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LIBRARY  "^ 

UNIVER9WY  Of       I 
CAUPORNIA  I 

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Io3d.5 


JOURNEYS    OF   LA    SALLE 
VOLUME  I 


From    a    portrait    in    Gravier's    "Decouvertcs    de    la    Salle." 


The  Journeys  of 
Rene  Robert  Cavelier 

Sieur  de  La  Salle 


as  related  by  his  faithful  Lieutenant, 
Henri  de  Tonty;  his  missionary  col- 
leagues. Fathers  Zenobius  Membre, 
Louis  Hennepin  and  Anastasius  Douay; 
his  early  biographer,  Father  Christian 
LeCIercq  ;  his  trusted  subordinate, 
Henri  Joutel;  and  his  brother,  Jean 
Cavelier ;  together  with  Memoirs, 
Commissions,  etc. 

EDITED  WITH  AN  INTRODUCTION  BY 

Isaac  Joslin  Cox,  Ph.  D. 

Instructor  of  History,  University  of  Cincinnati 
ILLUSTRATED 


IN  TWO  VOLUMES 

Volume  1 


MCMXXII 

ALLERTON  BOOK  CO. 

New  York 


Copyright,  1905,  by 
Williams-Barker  Co. 


Printed  in  the  United  States  of  America 


INTRODUCTION 

The  career  of  Rene  Robert  Cavelier, 
Sieur  de  La  Salle,  in  a  measure  links  the 
exploits  of  his  compatriot  Champlain,  in  the 
North,  with  those  of  Cabeza  de  Vaca,  De 
Soto  and  Coronado,  in  the  South  and 
Southwest,  and  thus  fittingly  closes  the 
heroic  period  of  Spanish  and  French  explo- 
ration in  North  America.  Champlain,  in 
his  search  for  an  illusory  western  sea,  was 
facing  in  the  direction  of  a  possible  colonial 
empire,  but  his  knowledge  was  too  limited 
and  the  resources  of  his  colony  too  meagre 
to  permit  him  to  develop  it.  The  Spaniards 
DeVaca,  De  Soto,  and  Coronado,  whose  nar- 
ratives have  already  appeared  in  The  Trail 
Makers,  had  preceded  La  Salle  nearly  a 
century  and  a  half,  but  for  this  long  period 
their  suggestion  of  colonial  expansion  in 
the  Mississippi  Valley  had  remained  un- 
heeded. It  is  true  that  an  occasional 
memoir — such  as  that  of  Father  BenavideS;^ 

V 


INTRODUCTION 

in  1630^ — directed  the  attention  of  the 
Spanish  government  to  the  vast  region 
between  the  Rio  Grande  and  the  Florida 
peninsula;  but  no  motive  other  than  a 
religious  one  called  for  its  occupation,  and 
it  was  suffered  to  remain  in  the  unchal- 
lenged possession  of  the  savages.  It  was 
La  Salle's  mission,  indirectly,  to  arouse  the 
Spaniards  from  their  colonial  lethargy, 
while  he  determined  that  the  supposed  route 
to  the  South  Sea  and  the  Far  East  was  but 
the  great  central  highway  of  the  American 
Continent,  opening  an  appropriate  field  for 
a  new  French  colonial  empire. 

The  sword  of  the  bigoted  Spaniard  and 
the  commercial  enterprise  of  Elizabethan 
courtier  and  sailor  determined  the  fact  that 
the  French  must  approach  the  interior  by 
way  of  the  St.  Lawrence.  During  the  first 
decade  of  the  seventeenth  century  Cham- 
plain  established  upon  this  river  an  uncer- 
tain base  for  missionary  and  commercial 
endeavor.  From  this  vantage  point  he  and 
his  Recollect  companions  pushed  as  far  west 
as  Georgian  Bay.  By  1634  Nicollet  reached 
Green    Bay,    a    western    estuary    of    Lake 

'  Benavides  "Memorial,"  MSS.    Lenox  Branch, 
New  York  Public  Library. 
vi 


INTRODUCTION 

Michigan,  Here  for  a  time,  owing  to  the 
death  of  the  great  pioneer  of  French  explo- 
ration and  the  reHgious  compHcations  fol- 
lowing the  substitution  of  Jesuit  missiona- 
ries for  the  Recollects,  the  thin  current  of 
French  migration  ceased,  except  for  oc- 
casional fur-trading  expeditions.  Even  dur- 
ing this  period  of  restricted  life  upon  the 
St.  Lawrence  there  came  those  same  uncer- 
tain rumors  of  great  western  waters  that 
had  deceived  Champlain ;  and  when,  with 
renewed  government  activity,  the  western 
movement  again  began,  a  prominent  motive 
that  urged  it  forward  was  the  solution  of 
this  geographical  problem — a  problem  that 
engaged  the  attention  of  New  France's 
greatest  governor-general,  the  Count  of 
Frontenac,  and  the  energies  of  its  most  in- 
trepid explorer,  the  subject  of  these  vol- 
umes. 

The  French  occupation  of  the  Mississippi 
Valley,  to  use  a  somewhat  clumsy  figure  of 
speech,  resembled  a  wedge  whose  apex  was 
aimed  at  the  mouth  of  the  great  river,  whose 
eastern  side  threatened  not  merely  to  re- 
strain the  English  beyond  the  mountains, 
but  to  push  the  Spaniards  out  of  Florida, 
while  its  other  side  measurably  encroached 
vii 


INTRODUCTION 

upon  the  uncertain  regions  west  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi. The  placing  of  this  wedge  and 
the  peculiar  initial  impulse  which  made  its 
force  felt  in  the  distant  viceroyalty  of  New 
Spain  constituted  the  principal  task  of  La 
Salle.  The  ultimate  success  of  this  great 
movement  of  colonial  physics  in  pushing 
undersirable  rivals  out  of  the  fairest  por- 
tion of  the  American  Continent  depended 
upon  the  energy  with  which  the  French 
government  followed  up  this  initial  impulse. 
The  fact  that  it  did  not  adequately  do  so 
should  not  in  any  measure  detract  from  the 
genius  of  the  man  who  conceived  the  proper 
force  and  who,  despite  almost  insuperable 
obstacles,  had  the  courage  to  apply  it. 

It  is  but  fitting,  then,  that  in  The  Trail 
Makers  the  life-work  of  La  Salle  should 
form  the  closing  volumes  devoted  to  the 
great  French  and  Spanish  inland  explorers. 
De  Vaca  skirted  the  southern  edge  of  the 
Mississippi  Valley,  De  Soto  entered  it  from 
the  east,  and  Coronado  approached  it  from 
the  west.  Champlain  almost  solved  the 
problem  of  reaching  it  from  the  north ;  but 
it  was  left  for  La  Salle,  from  an  uncertain 
base  and  with  vastly  more  slender  resources 
than  the  two  great  Spaniards,  to  demon- 
viii 


INTRODUCTION 

strata  the  possibility  of  entering-  this  great 
valley  and  to  be  first  to  lead  the  way  in 

J'ts  effective  occupation. 
>  Even  during  the  period  of  governmental 
inaction,  which  terminated  in  1663,  La  Salle 
had  his  precursors,  whose  labor  was  of 
direct  stimulus  and  aid  to  him.  Jesuit  mis- 
sionaries, during  their  brief  sojourn  among 
the  Hurons,  heard  occasional  stories  of  a 
great  western  river  flowing  into  the  South 
Sea.  Adventurous  traders,  among  whom 
the  most  notable  were  Grosseilliers  and 
Radisson,  explored  the  shores  of  Lake 
Superior  and  possibly  penetrated  to  the 
Mississippi.  After  1661  Colbert,  in  France^ 
and  Tracy,  Courcelles  and  Talon,  in  Can- 
'^da,-  took  up  with  energy  the  task  of  ex- 
ploration abandoned  some  thirty  years  be- 
fore. The  Jesuit  Allouez  established  mis- 
sions upon  Green  Bay  and  the  Fox  River. 
The  trader  Joliet  and  the  Jesuit  Marquette 
were  despatched  in  quest  of  the  great  west- 
ern water,  and  after  passing  by  the  Fox- 
Wisconsin  portage,  in  June,  1673,  they  be- 
gan the  first  undoubted  French  exploration 
of  the  Mississippi  itself.  The  final  comple- 
tion of  this  task  fell  to  those  whose  deeds 
are  reported  in  the  following  pages. 
ix 


INTRODUCTION 

Rene  Robert  Cavelier,  Sieur  de  La  Salle, 
"was  born  in  Rouen,  France,  in  November, 
1643.  Of  a  wealthy  family,  he  received 
an  excellent  education,  especially  in  mathe- 
matics. As  a  youth  he  probably  had  some 
connection  with  the  Jesuits,  but  he  early  left 
their  order.  In  1666  he  came  to  Canada, 
where  a  brother — a  member  of  the  Sulpitian 
order  at  Montreal — had  already  preceded 
him.  Doubtless  through  the  influence  of 
this  brother,  he  obtained,  in  1667,  a  large 
^rant  of  land  at  the  rapids  afterwards 
known  as  La  Chine — a  name  suggestive  of 
western  exploration  that  still  hoped  to  reach 
the  distant  East. 

Although  applying  himself  to  his  task  as 
proprietor  with  commendable  industry  and 
meeting  with  a  reasonable  degree  of  suc- 
cess, other  duties  than  those  of  Seigneur 
under  the  Old  Regime  in  Canada  appealed 
to  the  ambitious  Frenchman.  He  made 
short  excursions  to  the  west  and  north,  so 
as  to  satisfy  himself  that  no  way  to  the 
western  sea  lay  in  those  directions.  He 
acquired  some  practical  knowledge  in  the 
Indian  tongues  and  in  methods  of  dealing 
with  the  natives,  for  his  position  on  the  St. 
Lawrence  gave  him  a  partial  monopoly  of 

X 


INTRODUCTiaN 

the  fur  trade.  Finally,  during  the  winter  of 
1668-69,  he  learned  from  a  chance  party 
of  Senecas  that  a  great  river  arose  in  their 
country,  and  after  a  course  entailing  a  canoe 
voyage  of  eight  or  nine  months,  emptied 
into  the  sea. 

This  report  aroused  the  explorer  in  La 
Salle,  for  he  conceived  the  possibility  of 
discovering  the  long-desired  channel  to  the 
South  Sea.  With  him,  to  dream  was  to 
act,  and  his  action,  approved  by  Courcelles 
and  Talon,  implied  the  disposal  of  his  estate 
to  provide  funds  for  the  undertaking.  Be- 
fore this  was  accomplished  the  prudent  gov- 
ernor had  combined  La  Salle's  scheme  with 
a  project  of  the  Sulpitians  to  establish  mis- 
sions among  the  western  Indians.  Thus 
the  expedition  that  left  La  Chine,  in  July, 
1669,  was  a  double-headed  one,  with  Dollier 
and  Gallinee  representing  the  churchly  ele- 
ment, and  La  Salle  the  equally  enticing- 
spirit  of  adventurous  exploration. 

It  was  La  Salle's  misfortune  thus  to 
begin  his  career  as  explorer,  as  well  as  to 
end  it,  with  the  handicap  of  divided  respon- 
sibility. We  may  then  naturally  expect  this 
expedition  to  result  largely  in  a  failure. 
Passing  to  Irondequoit  Bay,  on  the  south- 


INTRODUCTION 

ern  shore  of  Lake  Ontario,  the  explorers 
made  a  fruitless  journey  to  the  Seneca  vil- 
lages. Returning  thence,  they  passed  to  the 
western  end  of  Ontario,  where  they  encoun- 
tered Joliet  and  a  companion,  homeward 
bound  from  Lake  Superior.  Here  the  party 
separated,  Dollier  and  Gallinee  passing 
westward  by  Joliet's  route,  while  La  Salle 
turned  to  the  southward. 

After  leaving  his  Sulpitian  comrades  La 
Salle's  movements  are  enveloped  in  great 
uncertainty.  From  later  and  not  wholly 
reliable  reports,  apparently  based  upon  his 
own  statements,  he,  with  a  few  attendants, 
passed  from  Lake  Ontario  to  the  Alleghany 
River,  and  thence  down  that  stream  and  the 
Ohio,  as  far  as  the  present  city  of  Louis- 
ville. Here  he  was  deserted  by  his  men 
and  forced  to  return  alone  to  Canada.  The 
claim  has  been  made,  but  without  sufficient 
foundation,  that  La  Salle,  in  1670,  con- 
tinued on  down  the  Ohio  until  he  reached 
the  Mississippi,  and  during  the  following 
year  returned  to  that  great  river — this  time 
by  the  Chicago-Illinois  portage.  Although 
it  is  reasonably  certain  that  La  Salle  did 
not  thus  reach  the  Mississippi  before  Joliet 
and  Marquette,  it  is  more  than  possible  that 
xii 


INTRODUCTION 

at  this  period  he  explored  the  upper  courses 
of  both  the  Ohio  and  the  Illinois. 

From  the  uncertainty  of  these  four  years 
La  Salle  emerg-es,  in  1673,  ^s  the  assistant 
of  Frontenac  in  erecting  a  fort  upon  the 
shores  of  Lake  Ontario.  The  immediate 
object  of  these  confederates  was  to  over- 
awe the  Iroquois  and  to  control  the  western 
fur  trade;  and  the  furtherance  of  this 
object  included  the  erection  of  a  fort  on 
the  Niagara  River  and  the  construction  of 
a  vessel  on  Lake  Erie.  These  evident  aims 
of  the  governor  aroused  a  host  of  enemies 
against  him  and  his  young  subordinate, 
including  not  merely  Dutch  and  English 
traders  and  the  Iroquois,  as  we  should  nat- 
urally expect,  but  also  Canadians  and 
Jesuits,  for  he  was  running  counter  to  their 
cherished  plans  to  control  the  fur  trade  and 
evangelize  the  natives. 

Owing  to  the  vigorous  opposition  of  these 
domestic  enemies,  Frontenac  was  con- 
strained, in  the  fall  of  1674,  to  send  La 
Salle  to  France  to  provide  for  the  future 
maintenance  of  this  western  outpost,  to 
which  the  name  of  Fort  Frontenac  (now 
Kingston)  had  been  given.  In  accordance 
with  evident  prearrangement  with  Fron- 
xiii 


INTRODUCTION 

tenac,  La  Salle  petitioned  for  a  seigneurial 
grant  which  included  this  fort  and  the  sur- 
rounding region.  In  return  he  agreed  to 
reimburse  Frontenac  for  the  expense  in- 
curred in  its  construction  and  to  rebuild  it 
in  masonry.  This,  undertaking  involved  an 
expense  which  was  destined  greatly  to  han- 
dicap hrs  future  movements;  and  as  a 
recompense  for  his  service  and  others 
■which  he  expected  to  render  the  crown 
of  France,  he  also  petitioned  for  a 
patent   of   nobility. 

Obtaining  a  favorable  response  to  both 
his  petitions,  he  returned  to  Canada,  late  in 
1675,  in  company  with  a  future  companion, 
the  Recollect  friar,  Louis  Hennepin.  Secure 
in  the  favor  of  the  governor-general,  with 
a  grant  including  the  most  valuable  sei- 
gneury  in  New  France  and  a  practical 
monopoly  of  the  western  fur  trade,  La  Salle 
had  every  prospect  of  becoming  the  most 
■wealthy  proprietor  of  the  colony,  and  at  the 
same  time  of  advancing  materially  the  for- 
tunes of  his  patron.  He  spent  the  next  two 
years  in  establishing  his  grant  more  firmly 
by  rebuilding  the  fort,  introducing  settlers, 
and  constructing  vessels  to  ply  on  Lake 
Ontario.  At  the  end  of  this  time  report 
xiv 


INTRODUCTION 

credited  him  with  an  annual  income  of 
25,000  livres. 

As  in  the  case  of  his  former  seigneury 
at  La  Chine,  it  was  La  Salle  the  idealist, 
rather  than  La  Salle  the  man  of  affairs, 
that  now  forged  to  the  front.  His  ambi- 
tion extended  far  beyond  his  western  out- 
post, and  embraced  a  national  scope  as  well 
as  a  personal  one.  The  great  river  of 
earlier  report,  reached  but  not  fully  ex- 
plored by  Joliet  and  Marquette,  La  Salle 
now  believed  to  enter  the  Gulf  of  Mexico. 
To  prove  this  fact,  to  seize  and  fortify  its 
mouth  against  English  and  Spanish  inter- 
ference, and  to  monopolize  its  trade  itt 
buffalo  skins  and  other  peltries,  became  his 
great  ambition — an  ambition  that  advanced 
the  territorial  pretensions  of  his  natiot* 
equally  with  his  own  private  fortunes. 

In  pursuit  of  his  ideal.  La  Salle  embarked 
for  France  in  November,  1677,  ^^^  shortly 
after  his  arrival  presented  a  memorial  to 
Colbert,'^  asking  for  a  confirmation  of  his. 
seigneurial  tenure,  with  additional  powers, 
for  the  space  of  five  years,  to  esteblish  other 
posts  to  the  south  and  west  of  Fort  Fron- 
tenac.     On  May  12,  1678,  he  received  his 

'Margry,  "Decouvertes,"  etc.,  I,  329-336. 
XY 


INTRODUCTION 

coveted  patent,  granting  him  the  country 
"through  which,  to  ah  appearance,  a  way- 
may  be  found  to  Mexico."  To  this  grant, 
which  was  to  be  carried  on  without  expense 
to  the  crown,  was  attached  the  condition 
that  he  should  not  trade  with  those  tribes 
that  would  naturally  carry  their  furs  to 
Montreal. 

La  Salle  was  successful  in  inducing  his 
friends  and  relatives  to  finance  his  enter- 
prise. He  engaged  ship-carpenters  and 
and  other  mechanics  for  the  construction 
of  two  vessels — one  upon  Lake  Erie  and 
the  other  upon  some  branch  of  the  Missis- 
sippi. He  enlisted  the  services  of  a  sub- 
ordinate. La  Motte  de  Lussiere,  but,  more 
fortunate  still,  of  his  most  noted  lieuten- 
ant, Henri  de  Tonty  (or  Tonti).  In  com- 
pany with  these  he  reached  Quebec  in 
September,  1678,  where  he  found  awaiting 
him  Hennepin,  eager  to  engage  in  the  new 
enterprise. 

From  this  point  on,  the  documents  given 
in  these  two  volumes  tell  in  detail  the  story 
of  La  Salle's  wanderings,  but  it  may  be 
well  to  indicate  the  main  features.  These 
journeys  group  themselves  naturally  into 
two  main  divisions — his  Mississippi  explo- 
xvi 


INTRODUCTION 

rations,  from  1679  to  1683,  and  his  Texas 
journeys,  from  1684  till  his  death,  in  1687. 
During  the  former  period  La  Salle  built  the 
first  sailing  vessel  on  Lake  Erie,  erected 
Fort  Miami  on  the  St.  Joseph  and  Fort 
CreveccEur  on  the  Illinois,  performed  his 
>vonderful  winter  march  from  the  latter  to 
Fort  Frontenac,  organized  an  Indian  con- 
federacy against  the  Iroquois,  explored  the 
Mississippi  to  its  mouth  after  his  subor- 
dinate Hennepin  had  explored  its  upper 
course  to  the  Falls  of  St.  Anthony,  and 
erected  Fort  St.  Louis  on  the  Illinois  as 
a  stronghold  against  the  all-powerful  Iro- 
quois. In  1683  his  patron  Frontenac  was 
recalled  and  La  Salle  himself  relieved  of 
his  expiring  grant.  Late  in  this  year  he 
arrived  in  France,  again  a  petitioner,  with 
almost  nothing  tangible  to  show  as  the 
result  of  five  years  of  effort. 

The  bankrupt  explorer  courageously  ush- 
ered in  the  final  period  of  his  life  by  pre- 
senting to  Seignelay,  son  of  Colbert  and 
now  minister  of  the  marine,  the  two 
memoirs  which  appear  in  the  following 
pages.  In  connection  with  one  proposal 
therein  outlined  —  the  invasion  of  New 
Biscay — there  has  arisen  a  mooted  ques- 
xvii 


INTRODUCTION 

tion  concerning  his  connection  with  the 
Spanish  adventurer,  Penalosa,  then  urging 
a  similar  invasion  by  the  channel  of  the 
Rio  Grande  or  the  Panuco.  The  similarity 
of  their  plans  has  led  to  the  suspicion  of 
collusion,  but  it  is  probable  that  La  Salle 
became  acquainted  with  the  adventurer,  and 
then  merely  appropriated  what  was  best  in 
the  latter 's  project,  to  bolster  up  his  own. 
He  may  be  partially  justified  in  this  course 
by  the  fact  that  Peiialosa  was  pursuing  a 
like  policy  with  him.  Possibly  La  Salle, 
as  other  authorities  intimate,  may  have  had 
some  expectation  that  Penalosa  would  fol- 
low him,  but  if  so,  it  would  simply  be  as 
an  independent  venture. 

The  details  of  this  last  disastrous  voyage, 
the  divided  responsibility,  the  resultant 
quarrels  between  La  Salle  and  Beaujeu, 
the  mistaken  landing  upon  the  coast  of 
Texas,  the  fruitless  eflForts  of  La  Salle  to 
find  his  "fatal  river,"  his  pitiable  death  at 
the  hands  of  his  own  men,  and  the  subse- 
quent wanderings  of  the  remnant  of  his 
party  that  finally  reached  France,  have  been 
graphically  pictured  by  his  faithful  fol- 
lower, Joutel,  whose  abridged  narrative 
forms  the  main  portion  of  our  second 
xviii 


INTRODUCTION 

volume.  It  is  well  to  note,  however,  that 
the  documents  published  by  Margry  give  a 
much  more  favorable  view  of  Beaujeu's 
conduct  than  do  the  accounts  of  Joutel  or 
of  Cavelier.  The  course  of  La  Salle  dur- 
ing his  Texas  journey  is  shown,  even  by 
his  friends,  to  be  highly  erratic,  while 
Beaujeu  appears  in  the  light  of  the  prac- 
tical man  of  affairs.  The  careful  student 
of  the  period  must  acknowledge  that  there 
is  a  great  deal  of  uncertainty  and  vacilla- 
tion in  La  Salle's  movements  during  the 
critical  moments  of  this  unfortunate  expe- 
dition. Perhaps  the  vicissitudes  through 
which  he  had  passed  during  two  strenuous 
decades  of  frontier  exploration  had  affected 
his  judgment  and  rendered  him  what  he 
proved  to  be — an  unfortunate  leader. 

Any  formal  estimate  of  the  character  of 
La  Salle  would  clearly  be  out  of  place 
in  this  work.  Gravier,  in  his  Decouvertes 
et  Etahlissements  de  Cavelier  de  La  Salle, 
and  Margry  in  the  introduction  to  his 
Decouvertes  et  Etahlissements  des  Francois, 
give,  in  French,  a  detailed  and  far  too 
favorable  picture  of  their  illustrious  fellow- 
townsman.  Parkman's  brilliant  character- 
izations, often  quoted  verbatim  from  the 
xix 


INTRODUCTION 

original  sources,  in  a  measure  are  subject 
to  the  same  criticism.  Shea,  in  his  various 
editorial  notes,  minimizes  the  work  of  La 
Salle,  and  in  a  way  that  is  far  from  just. 
Winsor,  in  his  Cartier  to  Frontenac,  occu- 
pies a  middle  position  and  one  probably  more 
nearly  true  than  the  others.  He,  however, 
overestimates  the  connection  between  La 
Salle  and  Peiialosa  in  the  Texas  voyage. 
The  testimony  of  contemporary  writers 
seems  to  show  that  La  Salle  had  a  few  influ- 
ential friends  who  were  distinguished  by 
their  loyalty  to  him  and  by  their  confidence 
in  his  ultimate  success.  His  enemies  were 
numerous  and  vindictive,  but  he  neither 
took  the  pains  to  conciliate  them,  nor  ap- 
parently had  he  the  tact  to  do  so,  had  he 
tried.  He  was  coldly  ambitious,  reserved 
to  hauteur,  over-confident  in  his  own  judg- 
ment, with  great  natural  ability  and  equal 
determination,  imaginative  to  a  fault,  and 
consequently  often  more  visionary  than 
practical.  Had  he  been  allowed  to  carry 
out  his  plans  unopposed,  it  is  hardly  too 
much  to  say  that  more  than  one  seven 
years'  war  would  have  been  necessary  to 
shake  the  hold  of  France  upon  the  interior ; 
but  when  those  plans  ran  counter  to  the 


INTRODUCTION 

schemes  of  Jesuit  missionaries  and  irre- 
sponsible fur  traders,  human  nature,  to  men- 
tion nothing-  higher,  could  not  be  restrained 
from  persistent  opposition.  Yet  the  essen- 
tial failure  of  his  colonizing  and  monopoly 
projects  should  not  obscure  his  real  services 
as  the  greatest  French  explorer  of  the 
Mississippi  Valley, 

The  plan  of  these  two  volumes  devoted 
to  La  Salle  seems  to  require  some  expla- 
nation. The  various  documents  here  re- 
printed are  found  in  French's  Historical 
Collections  of  Louisiana^,  Part  I ;  Shea's 
Discovery  mid  Exploration  of  the  Missis- 
sippi Valley,  (Part  IV  of  the  Historical  Col- 
lections), and  Shea's  Early  Voyages  up  and 
down  the  Mississippi.  The  editor  has  fol- 
lowed closely  the  text  of  these  volumes, 
except  where  a  careful  collation  with  later 
editions  of  these  same  documents  has  shown 
a  better  reading.  Some  of  the  editorial 
notes  appearing  in  the  above  volumes  have 
also  been  omitted — in  some  cases  because 
incorrect  or  obsolete,  in  others  because  of 
very  little  interest  except  to  the  special 
student.  Where  this  has  been  done  the 
bibliog-raphies  in  the  appendix  will  enable 
the  curious  reader,  who  has  access  to  the 
xxi 


INTRODUCTION 

original  volumes,  readily  to  ascertain  just 
what  has  been  changed  or  omitted. 

Although  the  scope  of  the  volumes  will 
quickly  appear  from  a  cursory  examination 
of  the  table  of  contents,  an  additional  word 
of  explanation  may  be  helpful. 

The  first  volume  is  composed  of  miscella- 
neous documents  relating  to  the  Mississippi 
and  the  Texas  expedition,  while  the  second 
is  devoted  to  Joutel's  narrative  of  the  latter. 
Among  the  writers  represented  in  the  first 
volume  are  Tonty,  Hennepin,  Le  Clercq, 
Membre,  Douay,  Cavelier,  brother  of  the 
explorer,  and  La  Salle  himself.  The  some- 
what heterogenous  character  of  the  volume 
is  modified  by  the  fact  that  Tonty,  the  first 
and  most  important  of  those  mentioned, 
treats  of  the  whole  period  of  which  the 
others,  in  a  measure,  give  supplementary 
accounts. 

The  list  includes  all  of  those  who  from 
personal  knowledge  have  written  at  length 
concerning  La  Salle,  while  the  documents 
reprinted  comprise  nearly  all  the  original 
material  relating  to  him  that  is  available  in 
English.  Two  notable  exceptions  will  at 
once  occur  to  the  special  student  —  the 
various  translations  from  Margry,  pub- 
xxii 


INTRODUCTION 

lished  by  the  Caxton  Club,  and  the  Descrip- 
tion of  Louisiana,  or  its  later  form,  the 
New  Discovery,  of  Hennepin.  The  publi- 
cations of  the  Caxton  Club,  of  course,  cannot 
yet  be  reprinted,  while  Hennepin's  works 
are  too  long  for  these  volumes  and  can  be 
obtained  in  recent  editions  by  Shea  and  by 
Thwaites.  However,  a  portion  of  the  brief 
resume  of  the  Nouvelle  Decouverte,  which 
appears  in  the  first  volume  of  the  Historical 
Collections,  has  been  inserted  in  order  to 
add  Hennepin  to  our  list. 

The  general  subject  of  annotation  opens 
up  the  opportunity  to  bury  under  a  multi- 
tude of  notes  the  text  of  an  edition  of 
such  writers  as  those  here  presented.  The 
limits  of  the  volume  made  necessary  the 
policy  of  giving  but  few  notes,  and  those 
only  which  appear  to  be  indispensable.  By 
use  of  the  bibliographies  one  may  note  the 
texts  of  differing  contemporaries  and  from 
them  draw  his  own  conclusions.  In  such 
brief  annotation  as  the  editor  has  used,  it 
is  but  fitting  for  him  to  acknowledge  his 
indebtedness  to  the  labors  of  Shea  and  of 
Thwaites. 

Most  of  the  documents  are  reprinted  in 
the  form  given  by  French  and  by  Shea, 
xxiii 


INTRODUCTION 

but  the  more  extended  narratives  of  Tonty, 
Douay,  Cavelier,  and  Joutel  have  been 
broken  up  into  convenient  chapters,  without, 
however,  interfering  with  their  continuity. 
With  reference  to  Joutel,  the  natural  and  de- 
sirable arrangement  to  follow  would  have 
been  the  divisions  of  Margry's  fuller  text; 
but  this  would  have  meant  too  many  chap- 
ters and  chapters  of  unequal  length.  Ac- 
cordingly, a  more  arbitrary  arrangement 
has  been  followed,  but  one  which  permits 
a  ready  comparison  with  Margry.  The 
shorter  narratives  appear  in  a  single  chap- 
ter. This  chapter-division  permits  a  series 
of  comparative  bibliographic  notes,  which 
the  editor  hopes  will  prove  helpful  in  locat- 
ing, by  chronological  periods,  the  original 
sources  relating  to  the  great  explorer. 

Two  appendices  appear  in  the  second  vol- 
ume. The  first  contains  certain  legal  doc- 
uments relating  to  La  Salle;  the  second 
contains  two  bibliographies,  one  of  which 
is  a  classified  list  of  the  source  material 
and  secondary  works  relating  to  La  Salle, 
and  the  other  the  series  of  bibliographical 
notes  referred  to  at  the  close  of  the  pre- 
ceding paragraph.  These  notes  give  cross- 
references  to  the  documents  printed  in  these 
xxiv 


INTRODUCTION 

volumes  and  also  to  other  readily  available 
sources.  The  editor  has  attempted  to  make 
these  bibliographies  serviceable  rather  than 
minutely  complete.  '■ 

In  conclusion  the  editor  wishes  to  express 
his  appreciation  for  many  courtesies  and 
privileges  extended  to  him  while  working 
in  the  Cincinnati  Public  Library,  the 
Library  of  the  University  of  Cincinnati,  the 
Columbia  University  Library,  and  the 
Lenox  Branch  of  the  New  York  Public 
Library. 

ISAAC   JOSLIN   COX. 

University  of  Cincinnati, 
July  6,  1905. 


XXV 


CONTENTS 

VOLUME  I 

PAGE 

Portrait   of   La    Salle,    from   Gravler, 

Frontispiece 

Introduction — Isaac  Joslin  Cox. ......       v 

CHAPTER  I. 
Memoir,  by  the  Sieur  de  la  Tonty ,      I 

CHAPTER  n. 

Tonty's  Memoir,   Part   11. — Tonty  on 

the  Illinois  and  Mississippi 31 

CHAPTER  III. 

Account  of  the  Discovery  of  the  River 
Mississippi  and  the  Adjacent 
Country,  by  Father  Louis  Henne- 
pin       66 

CHAPTER  IV. 

Narrative  of  the  First  Attempt  by  M. 
Cavelier  de  la  Salle  to  Explore  the 
Mississippi,  etc.,  by  Father  Chre- 
tien Le  Clercq 87 

xxvii 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  V.  PAGE 

Narrative  of  the  Adventures  of  La 
Salle's  Party  at  Fort  Crevecceur, 
in  Illinois,  from  February,  1680,  to 
June,  1 68 1,  by  Father  Zenobius 
Membre,  Recollect 106 

CHAPTER  VI. 

Narrative  of  La  Salle's  Voyage  Down 
the  Mississippi,  by  Father  Zeno- 
bius Membre,  Recollect 131 

CHAPTER  VH. 

Account  of  the  Taking  Possession  of 

Louisiana,  by  M.  de  la  Salle,  1682.  159 

CHAPTER  VHL 

Memoirs  presented  by  La  Salle  to  the 

Marquis  de  Seignelay  in  1684...    I?! 

CHAPTER  IX. 

Accoimt  of  La  Salle's  Attempt  to  Reach 
the  Mississippi  by  Sea,  and  of  the 
Establishment  of  a  French  Colony 
in  St.  Louis  Bay,  by  Father  Chris- 
tian Le  Clercq 205 

CHAPTER  X. 

Narrative  of  La  Salle's  Attempt  to  As- 
cend the  Mississippi  in  1687,  by 
Father  Anastasius  Douay,  Recol- 
lect.   Part  I— To  the  Death  of  La 

Salle 222 

xxviii 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  XI.  PAGE 

Douay's  Narrative,  Part  II.  The  Re- 
turn to  France 248 

CHAPTER  Xn. 

Cavelier's  Account  of  La  Salle's  Voy- 
age to  the  Mouth  of  the  Missis- 
sippi, His  Landing  in  Texas  and 
March  to  the  Mississippi  (Part  L 
To  April,  1686) 268 

CHAPTER  XHL 

Cavelier's  Account,  Part  H.    La  Salle's 

Last  Two  Journeys 285 


XXIX 


Journeys   of  La   Salle 

MEMOIR,^ 

BY 

THE  SIEUR  DE  LA  TONTY.^ 

''memoir  sent  in  1693,  ON  THE  DISCOVERY 
OF  THE  MISSISSIPPI  AND  THE  NEIGHBOR- 
ING NATIONS  BY  M.  D.  LA  SALLE,  FROM 
THE  YEAR  1678  TO  THE  TIME  OF  HIS 
DEATH,  AND  BY  THE  SIEUR  DE  TONTY  TO 
THE  YEAR  169I." 

CHAPTER  I 

After  having  been  eight  years  in  the 
French  service,  by  land  and  by  sea,  and 
having  had  a  hand  shot  off  in  Sicily  by  a 
grenade,  I  resolved  to  return  to  France  to 
solicit  employment.     At  that  time  the  late 

^  This  Memoir  forms  the  basis  of  a  spurious 
work,  printed  in  Paris,  1697,  entitled  "Derniers 
Decouvertes  dans  I'Amerique  Septentrionale,  de 
M.  de  la  Salle,  par  Chevalier  Tonti.  Gouverneur 
du  Fort  St.  Louis,  aux  Illinois,  Paris,  1697." 

^  For  bibliographic  notices  for  this  and  the  fol- 
lowing chapters  consult  Vol.  II.,  App.  II.  B, 
I 


JOURNEYS    OF 

M.  Cavelier  de  la  Salle  came  to  Court, 
a  man  of  great  intelligence  and  merit,  who 
sought  to  obtain  leave  to  discover  the  Gulf 
of  Mexico  by  crossing  the  southern  coun- 
tries of  North  America.  Having  obtained 
of  the  King  the  permission  he  desired 
through  the  favor  of  the  late  M.  Colbert 
and  M.  de  Seignelai,  the  late  Monseigneur 
the  Prince  Conty,  who  was  acquainted  with 
him,  and  who  honored  me  with  his  favor, 
directed  me  to  him  to  be  allowed  to  accom- 
pany him  in  his  long  journeys,  which  he 
very  willingly  assented  to.  We  sailed  from 
Rochelle  on  the  14th  of  July,  1678,  and  ar- 
rived at  Quebec  on  the  15th  of  September 
following.  We  recruited  there  for  some 
days,  and  after  having  taken  leave  of  M. 
de  Frontenac,  ascended  the  St.  Lawrence 
as  far  as  Fort  Frontenac  (Kingston),  120 
leagues  from  Quebec,  on  the  banks  of  the 
Lake  Frontenac  (Lake  Ontario),  which  is 
about  300  leagues  round.  After  staying 
there  four  days,  we  embarked  in  a  boat 
of  40  tons  burthen  to  cross  the  lake,  and 
on  Christmas  day  we  were  opposite  a  vil- 
lage called  Isonnoutouan,  to  which  M.  de  la 
Salle  sent  some  canoes  to  procure  Indian 
corn  for  our  subsistence.  From  thence  we 
sailed  towards  Niagara,  intending  to  look 
for  a  place  above  the  Falls  where  a  boat 
2 


LA    SALLE 

might  be  built.  The  winds  were  so  con- 
trary that  we  could  not  approach  it  nearer 
than  nine  leagues,  which  obliged  us  to  go 
by  land.  We  found  there  some  cabins  of 
the  Iroquois,  who  received  us  well.  We 
slept  there,  and  the  next  day  we  went  three 
leagues  further  up  to  look  for  a  good  place 
to  build  a  boat,  and  there  encamped.  The 
boat  we  came  in  was  lost  through  the  ob- 
stinacy of  the  pilot,  whom  M.  de  la  Salle 
had  ordered  to  bring  it  ashore.  The  crew 
and  the  things  in  it  were  saved.  M.  de  la 
Salle  determined  to  return  to  Fort  Fron- 
tenac  over  the  ice,  and  I  remained  in  com- 
mand at  Niagara,  with  a  Father  Recollet 
and  30  men.  The  boat  was  completed  in 
the  spring  [in  August]  of  1679.  M.  de 
la  Salle  joined  us  with  two  other  boats,  and 
several  men  to  assist  us  to  work  the  boat 
up  the  Rapids,  which  I  was  not  able  to 
ascend  on  account  of  the  weakness  of  my 
crew.  He  directed  me  to  proceed  and  wait 
for  him  at  the  extremity  of  Lake  Erie,  at 
a  place  called  Detroit,  120  leagues  from 
Niagara,  to  join  some  Frenchmen  whom  he 
had  sent  ofif  the  last  autumn.  I  embarked 
in  a  canoe  of  bark,  and  when  we  were  near 
Detroit  the  boat  came  up.  We  got  into  it, 
and  continued  our  voyage  as  far  as  Michili- 
makinac,  where  we  arrived  at  the  end 
3 


JOURNEYS    OF 

[27th]  of  August,  having  crossed  two  lakes 
larger  than  that  of  Frontenac  (Ontario). 
We  remained  there  some  days  to  rest  our- 
selves, and  as  M.  de  la  Salle  intended  to 
go  to  the  Illinois,  he  sent  me  to  the  Falls 
of  St.  Mary,  which  is  situated  where  Lake 
Superior  discharges  itself  into  Lake  Huron, 
to  look  for  some  men  who  had  deserted, 
and  he  in  the  meantime  sailed  for  the  Lake 
Illinois.  Having  arrived  at  Poutouatamis, 
an  Illinois  village,  the  calumet  was  sung, 
during  which  ceremony  presents  were  given 
and  received.  There  is  a  post  placed  in  the 
midst  of  the  assembly,  where  those  who 
wish  to  make  known  their  great  deeds  in 
war,  striking  the  post,  declaim  on  the  deeds 
they  have  done.  This  ceremony  takes  place 
in  presence  of  those  with  whom  they  wish 
to  make  friendship,  the  calumet  being  the 
symbol  of  peace.  M.  de  la  Salle  sent  his 
boat  back  to  Niagara  to  fetch  the  things 
he  wanted,  and,  embarking  in  a  canoe,  con- 
tinued his  voyage  to  the  Miamis  River,  and 
there  commenced  building  a  house.  In  the 
meantime  I  came  up  with  the  deserters, 
and  brought  them  back  to  within  30  leagues 
of  the  Miamis  River,  where  I  was  obliged 
to  leave  my  men,  in  order  to  hunt,  our  pro- 
visions failing  us.  I  then  went  on  to  join 
M.  de  la  Salle.     When  I  arrived  he  told  me 

4 


LA   SALLE 

he  wished  that  all  the  men  had  come  with 
me  in  order  that  he  might  proceed  to  the 
Illinois.  I  therefore  retraced  my  way  to 
find  them,  but  the  violence  of  the  wind 
forced  me  to  land,  and  our  canoe  was  upset 
by  the  violence  of  the  waves.  It  was,  how- 
ever, saved,  but  everything  that  was  in  it 
was  lost,  and  for  want  of  provisions  we 
lived  for  three  days  on  acorns.  I  sent  word 
of  what  had  happened  to  M.  de  la  Salle, 
and  he  directed  me  to  join  him.  I  went 
back  in  my  little  canoe,  and  as  soon  as  I 
arrived  we  ascended  25  leagues,  as  far  as 
the  portage,  where  the  men  whom  I  had 
left  behind  joined  us.  We  made  the  port- 
age, which  extends  about  two  leagues,  and 
came  to  the  source  of  the  Illinois  River. 
We  embarked  there,  and  ascending  [de- 
scending] the  river  for  100  leagues,  arrived 
at  a  village  of  the  savages.  They  were  ab- 
sent hunting,  and  as  we  had  no  provisions 
we  opened  some  caches^  of  Indian  corn. 

During  this  journey  some  of  our  French- 
men were  so  fatigued  that  they  determined 

*  "The  term  cache,  meaning  a  place  of  conceal- 
ment, was  originally  used  by  the  French  Canadian 
trappers  and  traders.  It  is  made  by  digging  a 
hole  in  the  ground,  somewhat  in  the  shape  of  a 
jug,  which  is  lined  with  dry  sticks,  grass,  or  any- 
thmg  else  that  will  protect  its  contents  from  the 
dampness  of  the  earth.    In  this  place  the  goods  to 

be     concealed     are     carefully     stowed     away." 

Gregg's  Commerce  of  the  Prairies,  vol.  I.,  p.  68. 
5 


JOURNEYS   OF 

to  leave  us,  but  the  night  they  intended  to. 
go  was  so  cold  that  their  plan  was  broken 
up.  We  continued  our  route,  in  order  to 
join  the  savages,  and  found  them  30  leagues 
above  [below]  the  village.  When  they  saw. 
us  they  thought  we  were  Iroquois,  and  put 
themselves  on  the  defensive  and  made  their 
women  run  into  the  woods ;  but  when  they 
recognized  us  the  women  were  called  back 
with  their  children,  and  the  calumet  was 
danced  to  M.  de  la  Salle  and  me,  in  order 
to  mark  their  desire  to  live  in  peace  with  us. 
We  gave  them  some  merchandise  for  the 
corn  which  he  had  taken  in  their  village. 
This  was  on  the  3d  of  January,  1679-80. 

As  it  was  necessary  to  fortify  ourselves 
during  the  winter  we  made  a  fort  which 
was  called  Crevecceur.*  Part  of  our  people 
deserted,  and  they  had  even  put  poison 
into  our  kettle.  M.  de  la  Salle  was  pois- 
oned, but  he  was  saved  by  some  antidote 
a  friend  had  given  to  him  in  France.  The 
desertion  of  these  men  gave  us  less  annoy- 
ance than  the  effect  which  it  had  on  the 
minds  of  the  savages.  The  enemies  of  M. 
de  la  Salle  had  spread  a  report  among  the 
Illinois  that  we  were  friends  of  the  Iro- 
quois, who  are  their  greatest  enemies.     The 

[*  For  a  discussion  of  the  name  cf.  VoL  I., 
page  104.] 

6 


LA    SALLE 

effect  thus  produced  will  be  seen  hereafter. 
M.  de  la  Salle  commenced  building  a  boat 
to  descend  the  river.  He  sent  a  Father 
Recollet  [Hennepin],  with  the  Sieur  Deau, 
to  discover  the  nation  of  the  Sioux,  400 
leagues  from  the  Illinois  on  the  Mississippi 
River  southwards,  [northwards]  a  river 
that  runs  not  less  than  800  leagues  to  the 
sea  without  rapids.  He  determined  to  go 
himself  by  land  to  Fort  Frontenac,  because 
he  had  heard  nothing  of  the  boat  which  he 
had  sent  to  Niagara.  He  gave  me  the  com- 
mand of  this  place,  and  left  us  on  the  22d  of 
March,  with  five  men.  On  his  road  he  met 
with  two  men,  whom  he  had  sent  in  the 
autumn  to  Michilimakinac  to  obtain  news  of 
his  boat.  They  assured  him  that  it  had  not 
come  down,  and  he  therefore  determined  to 
continue  his  journey.  The  two  men  were 
sent  to  me  with  orders  to  go  to  the  old  vil- 
lage to  visit  a  high  rock,  and  to  build  a 
strong  fort  upon  it.  Whilst  I  was  proceed- 
ing thither  all  my  men  deserted,  and  took 
away  everything  that  was  most  valuable. 
They  left  me  with  two  Recollets  and  three 
men,  newly  arrived  from  France,  stripped  of 
everything  and  at  the  mercy  of  the  sav- 
ages. All  that  I  could  do  was  to  send  an 
authentic  account  of  the  affair  to  M.  de 
la  Salle.  He  laid  wait  for  them  on  Lake 
7 


JOURNEYS   OF 

Frontenac,  took  some  of  them  and  killed 
others,  after  which  he  returned  to  the  Il- 
linois. As  for  his  boat,  it  was  never  heard 
of. 

During  the  time  this  happened  the  Illinois 
were  greatly  alarmed  at  seeing  a  party  of 
600  Iroquois.  It  was  then  near  the  month 
of  September.  The  desertion  of  our  men, 
and  the  journey  of  M.  de  la  Salle  to  Fort 
Frontenac,  made  the  savages  suspect  that 
we  intended  to  betray  them.  They  severely 
reproached  me  on  the  arrival  of  their  ene- 
mies. As  I  was  so  recently  come  from 
France  and  was  not  then  acquainted  with 
their  manners,  I  was  embarrassed  at  this 
event  and  determined  to  go  to  the  enemy 
with  necklaces,  and  to  tell  them  that  I  was 
surprised  they  should  come  to  make  war 
with  a  nation  dependent  on  the  government 
of  New  France,  and  which  M.  de  la  Salle, 
whom  they  esteemed,  governed.  An  Illi- 
nois accompanied  me,  and  we  separated  our- 
selves from  the  body  of  the  Illinois,  who, 
to  the  number  of  400  only,  were  fighting 
with  the  enemy.  When  I  was  within  gun- 
shot the  Iroquois  shot  at  us,  seized  me.  took 
the  necklace  from  my  hand,  and  one  of 
them  plunged  a  knife  into  my  breast, 
wounding  a  rib  near  the  heart.  However, 
having  recognized  me,  they  carried  me  into 
8 


LA   SALLE 

the  midst  of  the  camp,  and  asked  me  what' 
I  came  for.  I  gave  them  to  understand 
that  the  IlHnois  were  under  the  protection 
of  the  King  of  France  and  of  the  Governor 
of  the  country,  and  that  I  was  surprised 
that  they  wished  to  break  with  the  French, 
and  not  to  continue  at  peace.  All  this  time 
skirmishing  was  going  on  on  both  sides, 
and  a  warrior  came  to  give  notice  that  their 
left  wing  was  giving  way,  and  that  they 
had  recognized  some  Frenchmen  among  the 
Illinois,  who  shot  at  them.  On  this  they 
were  greatly  irritated  against  me,  and  held 
a  council  on  what  they  should  do  with  me. 
There  was  a  man  behind  me  with  a  knife 
in  his  hand,  who  every  now  and  then  lifted 
up  my  hair.  They  were  divided  in  opinion. 
Tegantouki,  chief  of  the  Isonoutouan,  [Sen- 
ecas]  desired  to  have  me  burnt.  Agoasto, 
chief  of  the  Onnoutagues,  [Onandagas] 
wished  to  have  me  set  at  liberty,  as  a  friend 
of  M.  de  la  Salle,  and  he  carried  his  point. 
They  agreed  that,  in  order  to  deceive  the 
Illinois,  they  should  give  me  a  necklace  of 
porcelain  beads  to  prove  that  they  also  were 
children  of  the  Governor,  and  ought  to  unite 
and  make  a  good  peace.  They  sent  me  to 
deliver  this  message  to  the  Illinois.  I  had 
much  difficulty  in  reaching  them,  on  account 
of  the  blood  I  had  lost,  both  from  my  wound 
9 


JOURNEYS    OF 

and  from  my  mouth.  On  my  way  I  met  the 
Fathers  Gabriel  de  la  Ribourde  and  Zenoble 
Membre,  who  were  coming  to  look  after 
me.^  They  expressed  great  joy  that  these 
barbarians  had  not  put  me  to  death.  We 
went  together  to  the  Illinois,  to  whom  I  re- 
ported the  sentiments  of  the  Iroquois,  add- 
ing, however,  that  they  must  not  altogether 
trust  them.  They  retired  within  their  vil- 
lage, but  seeing  the  Irocjuois  present  them- 
selves every  day  in  battle  array,  they  went 
to  rejoin  their  wives  and  children,  three 
leagues  off.  When  they  went  I  was  left 
with  the  two  Recollets  and  three  French- 
men. The  Iroquois  made  a  fort  in  their 
village,  and  left  us  in  a  cabin  at  some  dis- 
tance from  their  fort.  Two  days  after,  the 
Illinois  appearing  on  the  neighboring  hills, 
the  Iroquois  thought  that  we  had  some 
communication  with  them;  this  obliged 
them  to  take  us  within  their  fort.  They 
pressed  me  to  return  to  the  Illinois  and  in- 
duce them  to  make  a  treaty  of  peace.  Tliey 
gave  me  one  of  their  own  nation  as  a  host- 
age, and  I  went  with  Father  Zenoble.  The 
Iroquois  remained  with  the  Illinois,  and 
one  of  the  latter  came  with  me.  When  we 
got  to  the  fort,  instead  of  mending  matters, 

['^  For  Membre's  account  of  this  encounter  see 
Vol.  I.,  page  119.] 

10 


LA    SALLE 

he  spoilt  them  entirely  by  owning  that  they 
had  in  all  only  400  men,  and  that  the  rest 
of  their  young  men  were  gone  to  war,  and 
that  if  the  Iroquois  really  wished  for  peace 
they  were  ready  to  give  them  the  beaver 
skins  and  some  slaves  which  they  had.  The 
Iroquois  called  me  to  them  and  loaded  me 
with  reproaches;  they  told  me  that  I  was 
a  liar  to  have  said  that  the  Illinois  had 
1,200  warriors,  besides  the  allies  who  had 
given  them  assistance.  Where  were  the 
60  Frenchmen  who  I  had  told  them  had 
been  left  at  the  village?  I  had  much  dif- 
ficulty in  getting  out  of  the  scrape.  Tlie 
same  evening  they  sent  back  the  Illinois  to 
tell  his  nation  to  come  the  next  day  to 
within  half  a  league  of  the  fort,  and  that 
they  would  there  conclude  the  peace,  which 
in  fact  they  did  at  noon.  The  Iroquois  gave 
them  presents  of  necklaces  and  merchan- 
dise. The  first  necklace  signified  that  the 
Governor  of  New  France  was  angry  at 
their  having  come  to  molest  their  brothers ; 
the  second  was  addressed  to  M.  de  la  Salle 
with  the  same  meaning;  and  the  third,  ac- 
companied with  merchandise,  bound  them 
as  by  oath  to  a  strict  alliance  that  hereafter 
they  should  live  as  brothers.  They  then 
separated,  and  the  Illinois  believed,  after 
these  presents,  in  the  sincerity  of  the  peace, 
II 


JOURNEYS   OF 

which  induced  them  to  come  several  times 
into  the  fort  of  Iroquois,  where  some  Illi- 
nois chiefs  having  asked  me  what  I  thought, 
I  told  them  they  had  everything  to  fear, 
that  their  enemies  had  no  good  faith,  that 
I  knew  that  they  were  making  canoes  of 
elm-bark,  and  that  consequently  it  was  in- 
tended to  pursue  them ;  and  that  they  should 
take  advantage  of  any  delay  to  retire  to 
some  distant  nation,  for  that  they  would 
most  assuredly  be  betrayed. 

The  eighth  day  after  their  arrival,  on  the 
loth  of  September,  the  Iroquois  called  me 
and  the  Father  Zenoble  to  council,  and  hav- 
ing made  me  sit  down,  they  placed  six 
packets  of  beaver  skins  before  us,  and  ad- 
dressing me,  they  said,  that  the  two  first 
packets  were  to  inform  M.  de  Frontenac 
that  they  would  not  eat  his  children,  and 
that  he  should  not  be  angry  at  what  they 
had  done ;  the  third,  a  plaster  for  my 
wound ;  the  fourth,  some  oil  to  rub  on  my 
own  and  Father  Zenoble's  limbs,  on  account 
of  the  long  journeys  we  had  taken ;  the 
fifth,  that  the  sun  was  bright  f  the  sixth, 
that  we  should  profit  by  it  and  depart  the 
next  day   for  the   French   settlements.      I 

'The  published  relation  states:  "Par  le  cin- 
queme  ils  nous  cxhortaient  a  adorer  le  soleil"  (p. 
122).  The  original  is  simply :  "Le  5e  quel  e  soleil 
etait  beau." 

12 


LA    SALLE 

asked  them  when  they  would  go  away 
themselves.  Murmurs  arose,  and  some  of 
them  said  that  they  would  eat  some  of  the 
Illinois  before  they  went  away ;  upon  which 
I  kicked  away  their  presents,  saying,  that 
I  would  have  none  of  them,  since  they  de- 
sired to  eat  the  children  of  the  Governor. 
An  Abenakis  who  was  with  them,  who 
spoke  French,  told  me  that  I  irritated  them, 
and  the  chiefs  rising  drove  me  from  the 
council.  We  went  to  our  cabin,  where  we 
passed  the  night  on  our  guard,  resolved  to 
kill  some  of  them  before  they  should  kill 
us,  for  we  thought  that  we  should  not  live 
out  the  night.  However,  at  daybreak  they 
directed  us  to  depart,  which  we  did.  After 
five  hours'  sailing  we  landed  to  dry  our 
peltries  which  were  wet,  while  we  repaired 
our  canoe.  The  Father  Gabriel  told  me  he 
was  going  aside  to  pray.  I  advised  him 
not  to  go  away,  because  we  were  surrounded 
by  enemies.  He  went  about  looo  paces  off, 
and  was  taken  by  forty  savages,  of  a  nation 
called  Kikapous,  who  carried  him  away  and 
broke  his  head.  Finding  that  he  did  not 
return,  I  went  to  look  for  him  with  one  of 
the  men.  Having  discovered  his  trail,  I 
found  it  cut  by  several  others,  which  joined 
and  ended  at  last  in  one.  I  brought  back 
this  sad  news  to  the  Father  Zenoble,  who 

13 


JOURNEYS    OF 

was  greatly  grieved  at  it.  Towards  even- 
ing we  made  a  great  fire,  hoping  that  per- 
haps he  might  return ;  and  we  went  over 
to  the  other  side  of  the  river,  where  we  kept 
a  good  lookout.  Towards  midnight  we 
saw  a  m.an  at  a  distance,  and  then  many- 
others.  The  next  day  we  crossed  over  the 
river  to  look  for  our  crew,  and  after  wait- 
ing till  noon  we  embarked  and  reached  the 
Lake  Illinois  by  short  journeys,  always  hop- 
ing to  meet  with  the  good  father.  After 
having  sailed  on  the  lake  as  far  as  La  Tou- 
issant  we  were  wrecked,  twenty  Jeagues 
from  the  village  of  Poutouatamis.  Our  pro- 
visions failing  us,  I  left  a  man  to  take  care 
of  our  things  and  went  ofif  by  land ;  but  as 
I  had  a  fever  constantly  on  me  and  my  legs 
were  swollen,  we  did  not  arrive  at  this  vil- 
lage till  St.  Martin's  day  (November  ii, 
1680).  During  this  journey  we  lived  on 
wild  garlick,  which  we  were  obliged  to  grub 
up  from  under  the  snow.  When  we  arrived 
we  found  no  savages ;  they  were  gone  to 
their  winter  quarters.  We  were  obliged  to 
go  to  the  places  they  had  left,  where  we  ob- 
tained hardly  as  much  as  two  handfuls  of 
Indian  corn  a  day,  and  some  frozen  gourds 
which  we  piled  up  in  a  cabin  at  the  water's 
side.  Whilst  we  were  gleaning,  a  French- 
man whom  we  had  left  at  the  cache,  came 
14 


LA   SALLE 

to  the  cabin  where  we  had  left  our  little 
store  of  provisions.  He  thought  we  had 
put  them  there  for  him,  and  therefore  did 
not  spare  them.  We  were  very  much  sur- 
prised, as  we  were  going  off  to  MichiHma- 
kinac,  to  find  him  in  the  cabin,  where  he 
had  arrived  three  days  before.  We  had 
much  pleasure  in  seeing  him  again,  but 
little  to  see  our  provisions  partly  consumed. 
We  did  not  delay  to  embark,  and  after  two 
hours'  sail,  the  wind  in  the  offing  obliged 
us  to  land,  when  I  saw  a  fresh  trail,  and 
directed  that  it  should  be  followed.  It  led 
to  the  Poutouatamis  village,  who  had  made 
a  portage  to  the  bay  of  the  Puans,  [Green 
Bay].  The  next  day,  weak  as  we  were,  we 
carried  our  canoe  and  all  our  things  into  this 
bay,  to  which  there  was  a  league  of  portage. 
We  embarked  in  Sturgeon  Creek,  and  turn- 
ed to  the  right  at  hazard,  not  knowing  where 
to  go.  After  sailing  for  a  league,  we  found 
a  number  of  cabins,  which  led  us  to  expect 
soon  to  find  the  savages. 

Five  leagues  from  this  place  we  were 
stopped  by  the  wind  for  eight  days,  wTiich 
compelled  us  to  consume  the  few  provisions 
we  had  collected  together,  and  at  last  we 
v.'ere  without  anything.  We  held  a  council, 
and  despairing  of  being  able  to  come  up 
with  the  savages,  every  one  asked  to  return 
15 


JOURNEYS   OF 

to  the  village,  where  at  least  there  was 
wood,  so  that  we  might  die  warm.  The 
wind  lulling  we  set  off,  and  on  entering 
Sturgeon's  Creek  we  saw  a  fire  made  by 
savages  who  had  just  gone  away.  We 
thought  they  were  gone  to  their  village,  and 
determined  to  go  there ;  but  the  creek  hav- 
ing frozen  in  the  night  we  could  not  proceed 
in  our  canoe.  We  made  shoes  of  the  late 
Father  Gabriel's  cloak,  having  no  leather. 
We  were  to  have  started  in  the  morning, 
but  one  of  my  men  being  very  ill  from  hav- 
ing eaten  some  parre-fleche  in  the  evening, 
delayed  us.  As  I  was  urging  our  starting, 
two  Ottawas  savages  came  up,  who  led 
us  to  where  the  Poutouatamis  were.  We 
found  some  Frenchmen  with  them,  who 
kindly  received  us.  I  spent  the  winter  with 
them,  and  the  Father  Zenoble  left  us,  to  pass 
the  winter  with  the  Jesuits  at  the  end  of  the 
bay.  I  left  this  place  in  the  spring  (1681) 
for  Michilimakinac,  hardly  recovered  from 
the  effects  of  what  we  had  suffered  from 
hunger  and  cold  during  thirty-four  days. 
We  arrived  at  Michilimakinac  about  the 
fete  Dieu  in  October  [June] .  M.  de  la  Salle 
arrived  with  M.  Forest  some  days  after- 
wards, on  his  way  to  seek  us  at  the  Illinois. 
He  was  very  glad  to  see  us  again,  and  not- 
withstanding the  many  past  reverses,  made 
16 


LA    SALLE 

new  preparations  to  continue  the  discovery 
which  he  had  undertaken.  I  therefore  em- 
barked with  him  for  Fort  Frontenac,  to 
fetch  things  that  we  should  want  for  the 
expedition.  The  Father  Zenoble  accom- 
panied us.  When  we  came  to  Lake  Fron- 
tenac, M.  de  la  Salle  went  forward,  and  I 
waited  for  his  boat  at  the  village  of  Teza- 
gon.  When  it  arrived  there  I  embarked 
for  Illinois.  At  the  Miamis  River  I  as- 
sembled some  Frenchmen  and  savages  for 
the  voyage  of  discovery,  and  M.  de  la  Salle 
joined  us  in  October.^  We  went  in  canoes 
to  the  River  Chicagou,  where  there  is  a 
portage  which  joins  that  of  the  Illinois.  The 
rivers  being  frozen,  we  made  sledges  and 
dragged  our  baggage  thirty  leagues  below 
the  village  of  Illinois,  where,  finding  the 
navigation  ope^n,  we  arrived  at  the  end  of 
January  [Feb.  6th]  at  the  great  River  Mis- 
sissippi. The  distance  from  Chicagou  was 
estimated  at  140  leagues.  We  descended 
the  river,  and  found,  six  leagues  below,  on 
the  right,  a  great  river,^  which  comes  from 
the  west,  on  which  there  are  numerous  na- 
tions. We  slept  at  its  mouth.  The  next 
day  we  went  on  to  the  village  of  Tamarous 
[Tamaroa,  an  Illinois  tribe],  six  leagues  off 

['  For  the  date  of  La  Salle's  arrival  cf.  Margry 
Vol.  I.,  592,  593,  and  Vol.  I.,  page  128.] 
*  ^Missouri. 

17 


JOURNEYS    OF 

on  the  left.  There  was  no  one  there,  all  the 
people  being  at  their  winter  quarters  in  the 
woods.  We  made  marks  to  inform  the  sav- 
ages that  we  had  passed,  and  continued  our 
route  as  far  as  the  River  Ouabache,^  which 
is  eighty  leagues  from  that  of  Illinois.  It 
comes  from  the  east,  and  is  more  than  500 
leagues  in  length.  It  is  by  this  river  that  the 
Iroquois  advance  to  make  war  against  the 
nations  of  the  south.  Continuing  our  voy- 
age about  sixty  leagues,  we  came  to  a  place 
which  was  named  Fort  Prudhomme,  be- 
cause one  of  our  men  lost  himself  there 
when  out  hunting,  and  was  nine  days  with- 
out food.  As  they  were  looking  for  him 
they  fell  in  with  two  Chikasas  savages, 
whose  village  was  three  days'  journey  in- 
land. They  have  2,000  warriors,  the  great- 
est number  of  whom  have  fiat  heads,  which 
is  considered  a  beauty  among  them,  the 
women  taking  pains  to  flatten  the  heads  of 
their  children,  by  means  of  a  cushion  which 
they  put  on  the  forehead  and  bind  with  a 
band,  which  they  also  fasten  to  the  cradle, 
and  thus  make  their  heads  take  this  form. 
(When  they  grow  up  their  faces  are  as  big 
as  a  large  soup  plate.  All  the  nations  on 
the  seacoast  have  the  same  custom. 

M.  de  la  Salle  sent  back  one  of  them  with 

'  Ohio. 
18 


LA    SALLE 

presents  to  his  village,  so  that,  if  they  had 
taken  Proudhomme,  they  might  send  him 
back, but  we  found  him  on  the  tenth  [ninth] 
day,  and  as  the  Chikasas  did  not  return,  we 
continued  our  route  as  far  as  the  village 
of  Cappa,  fifty  leagues  off.  We  arrived 
there  in  foggy  weather,  and  as  we  heard 
the  sound  of  the  tambour,  we  crossed  over 
to  the  other  side  of  the  river,  where,  in  less 
than  half  an  hour,  we  made  a  fort.  The 
savages  having  been  informed  that  we  were 
coming  down  the  river,  came  in  their  canoes 
to  look  for  us.  We  made  them  land,  and 
sent  two  Frenchmen  as  hostages  to  their 
village ;  the  chief  visited  us  with  the  calu- 
met, and  we  went  to  the  savages.  They 
regaled  us  with  the  best  they  had,  and  after 
having  danced  the  calumet  to  M.  de  la  Salle, 
they  conducted  us  to  their  village  of  Toy- 
engan,  eight  leagues  from  Cappa.  They 
received  us  there  in  the  same  manner,  and 
from  thence  they  went  with  us  to  Toriman, 
two  leagues  further  on,  where  we  met  with 
the  same  reception.  It  must  be  here  re- 
marked that  these  villages,  the  first  of 
which  is  Osotonoy,  are  six  leagues  to  the 
right  descending  the  river,  and  are  com- 
monly called  Akancas  (Arkansas).  The 
first  three  villages  are  situated  on  the  great 
river  (Mississippi).  M.  de  la  Salle  erected 
19 


JOURNEYS    OF 

the  arms  of  the  King  there ;  they  have 
cabins  made  with  the  bark  of  cedar;  they 
have  no  other  worship  than  the  adoration 
of  all  sorts  of  animals.  Their  country  is 
very  beautiful,  having  abundance  of  peach, 
plum  and  apple  trees,  and  vines  flourish 
there ;  buffaloes,  deer,  stags,  bears,  turkeys, 
are  very  numerous.  They  have  even  do- 
mestic fowls.  They  have  very  little  snow 
during  the  winter,  and  the  ice  is  not  thicker 
than  a  dollar.  They  gave  us  guides  to  con- 
duct us  to  their  allies,  the  Taencas,  six 
leagues  distant. 

The  first  day  we  began  to  see  and  kill 
alligators,  which  are  numerous  and  from 
15  to  20  feet  long.  When  we  arrived  oppo- 
site to  the  village  of  the  Taencas,  M.  de  la 
SaJle  desired  me  to  go  to  it  and  inform  the 
chief  of  his  arrival.  I  went  with  our  guides, 
and  we  had  to  carry  a  bark  canoe  for  ten 
arpetus,  and  to  launch  it  on  a  small  lake  in 
which  their  village  was  placed.  I  was  sur- 
prised to  find  their  cabins  made  of  mud  and 
covered  with  cane  mats.  The  cabin  of  the 
chief  was  40  feet  square,  the  wall  10  feet 
high,  a  foot  thick,  and  the  roof,  which  was 
of  a  dome  shape,  about  15  feet  high.  I  was 
not  less  surprised  when,  on  entering,  I  saw 
the  chief  seated  on  a  camp  bed,  with  tliree 
of  his  wives  at  his  side,  surrounded  by  more 
20 


LA    SALLE 

than  60  old  men,  clothed  in  large  white 
cloaks,  which  are  made  by  the  women  out 
of  the  bark  of  the  mulberry  tree,  and  are 
tolerably  well  worked.  The  women  were 
clothed  in  the  same  manner ;  and  every  time 
the  chief  spoke  to  them,  before  answering 
him,  they  howled  and  cried  out  several  times 
— "O-o-o-o-o-o!"  to  show  their  respect  for 
him,  for  their  chiefs  are  held  in  as  much 
consideration  as  our  kings.  No  one  drinks 
out  of  the  chief's  cup,  nor  eats  out  of  his 
plate,  and  no  one  passes  before  him;  when, 
he  walks  they  clean  the  path  before  him. 
When  he  dies  they  sacrifice  his  youngest 
wife,  his  house-steward  (mattre  d' hotel), 
and  a  hundred  men,  to  accompany  him 
into  the  other  world.  They  have  a  form  of 
worship,  and  adore  the  sun.  There  is  a 
temple  opposite  the  house  of  the  chief,  and 
similar  to  it,  except  that  three  eagles  are 
placed  on  this  temple,  who  look  towards  the 
rising  sun.  The  temple  is  surrounded  with 
strong  mud  walls,  in  which  are  fixed  spikes, 
on  which  they  place  the  heads  of  their  ene- 
mies whom  they  sacrifice  to  the  sun.  At  the 
door  of  the  temple  is  a  block  of  wood,  on 
which  is  a  great  shell  (z/ignot),  and  plaited 
roimd  with  the  hair  of  their  enemies  in  a 
plait  as  thick  as  an  arm,  and  about  20 
fathoms  (toises)  long.  The  inside  of  the 
21 


JOURNEYS   OF 

temple  is  naked ;  there  is  an  altar  in  the 
middle,  and  at  the  foot  of  the  altar  three 
logs  of  wood  are  placed  on  end,  and  a  fire 
is  kept  up  day  and  night  by  two  old  priests 
(jongleurs),  who  are  the  directors  (mai- 
tres)  of  their  worship.  These  old  men 
showed  me  a  small  cabinet  within  the  wall, 
made  of  mats  of  cane.  Desiring  to  see  what 
was  inside,  the  old  men  prevented  me,  giv- 
ing me  to  understand  that  their  God  was 
there.  But  I  have  since  learnt  that  it  is  the 
place  where  they  keep  their  treasure,  such 
as  fine  pearls  which  they  fish  up  in  the 
neighborhood,  and  European  merchandise. 
At  the  last  quarter  of  the  moon  all  the 
cabins  make  an  offering  of  a  dish  of  the 
best  food  they  have,  which  is  placed  at  the 
door  of  the  temple.  The  old  men  take  care 
to  carry  it  away,  and  to  make  a  good  feast 
of  it  with  their  families.  Every  spring  they 
make  a  clearing,  which  they  name  ''the  field 
of  the  spirit,"  when  all  the  men  work  to  the 
sound  of  the  tambour.  In  the  autumn  the 
Indian  corn  is  harvested  with  much  cere- 
mony, and  stored  in  magazines  until  the 
moon  of  June  in  the  following  year,  when 
all  the  village  assemble,  and  invite  their 
neighbors  to  eat  it.  They  do  not  leave  the 
ground  until  they  have  eaten  it  all,  making 
great  rejoicings  the  whole  time.     This  is  all 

22 


LA    SALLE 

I  learnt  of  this  nation.     The  three  villages 
below  have  the  same  customs. 

Let  us  return  to  the  chief.  When  I  was 
in  his  cabin  he  told  me  with  a  smiling  coun- 
tenance the  pleasure  he  felt  at  the  arrival 
of  the  French.  I  saw  that  one  of  his  wives 
wore  a  pearl  necklace.  I  presented  her  with 
ten  yards  of  blue  glass  beads  in  exchange 
for  it.  She  made  some  difficulty  but  the 
chief  having  told  her  to  let  me  have  it,  she 
did  so.  I  carried  it  to  M.  de  la  Salle,  giv- 
ing him  an  account  of  all  that  I  had  seen, 
and  told  him  that  the  chief  intended  to  visit 
him  the  next  day — which  he  did.  He  would 
not  have  done  this  for  savages,  but  the  hope 
of  obtaining  some  merchandise  induced  him 
to  act  thus.  He  came  the  next  day  with 
wooden  canoes  to  the  sound  of  the  tambour 
and  the  music  of  the  women.  The  savages 
of  the  river  use  no  ether  boats  than  these. 
M.  de  la  Salle  received  him  with  much  po- 
liteness, and  gave  him  some  presents ;  they 
gave  us,  in  return,  plenty  of  provisions  and 
some  of  their  robes.  The  chiefs  returned 
well  satisfied.  We  stayed  during  the  day, 
which  was  the  22d  of  March.  An  obser- 
vation gave  31°  of  latitude.  We  left  on  the 
22d  [26th],  and  slept  in  an  island  ten 
leagues  off.  The  next  day  we  saw  a  canoe, 
and  M.  de  la  Salle  ordered  me  to  chase  it, 
23 


JOURNEYS    OF 

which  I  did,  and  as  I  was  just  on  the  point 
of  taking  it,  more  than  lOO  men  appeared 
on  the  banks  of  the  river  to  defend  their 
people.  M.  de  la  Salle  shouted  out  to  me 
to  come  back,  which  I  did.  We  went  on 
and  encamped  opposite  them.  Afterwards, 
M.  de  la  Salle  expressing  a  wish  to  meet 
them  peaceably,  I  offered  to  carry  toi  them 
the  calumet,  and  embarking,  went  to  them. 
At  first  they  joined  their  hands,  as  a  sign 
that  they  wished  to  be  friends ;  I,  who  had 
but  one  hand,  told  our  men  to  do  the  same 
thing. 

I  made  the  chief  men  among  them  cross 
over  to  M.  de  la  Salle,  who  accompanied 
them  to  their  village,  three  leagues  inland, 
and  passed  the  night  there  with  some  of  his 
men.  The  next  day  he  returned  with  the 
chief  of  the  village  where  he  had  slept,  who 
was  a  brother  of  the  great  chief  of  the 
Natches ;  he  conducted  us  to  his  brother's 
village,  situated  on  the  hillside,  near  the 
river,  at  six  leagues'  distance.  We  were 
well  received  there.  This  nation  counts 
more  than  300  w^arriors.  Here  the  men 
cultivate  the  ground,  hunt,  and  fish,  as  well 
as  the  Taencas,  and  their  manners  are  the 
same.  We  departed  thence  on  Good  Fri- 
day, and  after  a  voyage  of  20  leagues,  en- 
camped at  the  mouth  of  a  large  river,  which 
24 


LA   SALLE 

runs  from  the  west.  We  continued  our 
journey,  and  crossed  a  great  canal,  which 
went  towards  the  sea  on  the  right.  Thirty- 
leagues  further  on  we  saw  some  fishermen 
on  the  bank  of  the  river,  and  sent  to  recon- 
noitre them.  It  was  the  village  of  the  Quin- 
ipissas,^"  who  let  fly  their  arrows  upon  our 
men,  who  retired  in  consequence.  As  M. 
de  la  Salle  would  not  fight  against  any  na- 
tion, he  made  us  embark.  Twelve  leagues 
from  this  village,  on  the  left,  is  that  of  the 
Tangibaos.  Scarcely  eight  days  before  this 
village  had  been  totally  destroyed.  Dead 
bodies  were  lying  on  one  another,  and  the 
cabins  were  burnt.  We  proceeded  on  our 
course,  and  after  sailing  40  leagues,  arrived 
at  the  sea  on  the  7th  of  April,  1682. 

M.  de  la  Salle  sent  canoes  to  inspect  the 
channels;  some  of  them  went  to  the  chan- 
nel on  the  right  hand,  some  to  the  left,  and 
M.  de  la  Salle  chose  the  centre.  In  the 
evening  each  made  his  report,  that  is  to  say, 
that  the  channels  were  very  fine,  wide,  and 
deep.  We  encamped  on  the  right  bank ;  we 
erected  the  arms  of  the  King,  and  returned 
several  times  to  inspect  the  channels.  The 
same  report  was  made.  This  river  is  800 
leagues  long,  without  rapids,  400  from  the 

["  The  Bayougoulas  and  Mongoulachas  of 
Iberville.    Cf.  Margry  IV.,  120.] 

25 


JOURNEYS    OF 

country  of  the  Scioux,  and  400  from  the 
mouth  of  the  llHnois  river  to  the  sea.  The 
banks  are  almost  uninhabitable,  on  account 
of  the  spring  floods.  The  woods  are  all 
those  of  a  boggy  district,  the  country  one 
of  canes  and  briars  and  of  trees  torn  up 
by  the  roots ;  but  a  league  or  two  from  the 
river,  the  most  beautiful  country  in  the 
world,  prairies,  woods  of  mulberry  trees, 
vines,  and  fruits  that  we  were  not  acquaint- 
ed with.  The  savages  gather  the  Indian, 
corn  twice  in  the  year.  In  the  lower  part 
of  the  river,  which  might  be  settled,  the 
river  makes  a  bend  N.  and  S.,  and  in  many 
places  every  now  and  then  is  joined  by 
streams  on  the  right  and  left.  The  river 
is  only  navigable  (for  large  vessels?)  as 
far  as  the  village  of  the  Natches,  for  above 
that  place  the  river  winds  too  much ;  but 
this  does  not  prevent  the  navigation  of  the 
river  from  the  confluence  of  the  Ouabache 
and  the  Mississippi  as  far  as  the  sea.  There 
are  but  few  beavers,  but,  to  make  amends, 
there  is  a  large  number  of  buffaloes,  bears, 
large  wolves,  stags  and  hinds  in  abundance, 
and  some  lead  mines,  which  yield  two-thirds 
of  ore  to  one  of  refuse.  As  these  savages  are 
stationary  (sedentaires),  and  have  some 
habits  of  subordination,  they  might  be 
obliged  to  make  silk  in  order  to  procure 
26 


LA    SALLE 

necessaries  for  themselves ;  bringing  to 
them  from  France  the  eggs  of  silkworms, 
for  the  forests  are  full  of  mulberry-trees. 
This  would  be  a  valuable  trade. 

As  for  the  country  of  Illinois,  the  river 
runs  I  GO  leagues  from  the  Fort  St.  Louis, 
to  where  it  falls  into  the  Mississippi.  Thus 
it  may  be  said  to  contain  some  of  the  finest 
lands  ever  seen.  The  climate  is  the  same 
as  that  of  Paris,  though  in  the  40°  of  lati- 
tude. The  savages  there  are  active  and 
brave,  but  extremely  lazy,  except  in  war, 
when  they  think  nothing  of  seeking  their 
enemies  at  a  distance  of  500  or  600  leagues 
from  their  own  country.  This  constantly 
occurs  in  the  country  of  the  Iroquois,  whom, 
at  my  instigation,  they  continually  harass. 
Not  a  year  passes  in  which  they  do  not  take 
a  number  of  prisoners  and  scalps.  A  few 
pieces  of  pure  copper,  whose  origin  we  have 
not  sought,  are  found  in  the  river  of  the 
Illinois  country.  Polygamy  prevails  in  this 
nation,  and  is  one  of  the  great  hindrances 
to  the  introduction  of  Christianity,  as  well 
as  the  fact  of  their  having  no  form  of  wor- 
ship of  their  own.  The  nations  lower  down 
would  be  more  easily  converted,  because 
they  adore  the  sun,  which  is  their  divinity. 
This  is  all  that  I  am  able  to  relate  of  those 
parts. 

2)5 


JOURNEYS   OF 

Let  us  return  to  the  sea  coast,  where,  pro- 
visions faihng,  we  were  obHged  to  leave  it 
sooner  than  we  wished,  in  order  to  obtain 
provisions  in  the  neighboring  villages.  We 
did  not  know  how  to  get  anything  froni  the 
village  of  the  Quinipissas,  who  had  so  ill 
received  us  as  we  went  down  the  river.  We 
lived  on  potatoes  until  six  leagues  from 
their  village,  when  we  saw  smoke.  M.  de 
la  Salle  sent  to  reconnoitre  at  night.  Our 
people  reported  that  they  had  seen  some 
women.  We  went  on  at  daybreak,  and 
taking  four  of  the  women,  encamped  on 
the  opposite  bank.  One  of  the  women  was 
then  sent  with  merchandise  to  prove  that 
we  had  no  evil  design  and  wished  for  their 
alliance  and  for  provisions.  She  made  her 
report.  Some  of  them  came  immediately 
and  invited  us  to  encamp  on  the  other  bank, 
which  we  did.  We  sent  back  the 
three  other  women,  keeping,  however, 
constant  guard.  They  brought  us  some 
provisions  in  the  evening,  and  the 
next  morning,  at  daybreak,  the  scoundrels 
attacked  us. 

We  vigorously  repulsed  them,  and  by  ten 
o'clock  burnt  their  canoes,  and,  but  for  the 
fear  of  our  ammunition  failing,  we  should 
have  attacked  their  village.  We  left  in  the 
evening  in  order  to  reach  Natches,  where 
28 


LA    SALLE 

we  had  left  a  quantity  of  grain  on  passing 
down.  When  we  arrived  there  the  chief 
came  out  to  meet  us.  M.  de  la  Salle  made 
them  a  present  of  the  scalps  we  had  taken 
from  the  Quinipissas.  They  had  already 
heard  the  news,  for  they  had  resolved  to 
betray  and  kill  us.  We  went  up  to  their 
village,  and  as  we  saw  no  women  there,  we 
had  no  doubt  of  their  having  some  evil  de- 
sign. In  a  moment  we  were  surrounded 
by  1,500  men.  They  brought  us  something 
to  eat,  and  we  ate  with  our  guns  in  our 
hands.  As  they  were  afraid  of  firearms, 
they  did  not  dare  to  attack  us.  The  chief 
begged  M.  de  la  Salle  to  go  away,  as  his 
young  men  had  not  much  sense,  which  we 
very  willingly  did — the  game  not  being 
equal,  we  having  only  fifty  men,  French 
and  savages.  We  then  went  on  to  the 
Taencas,  and  then  to  the  Arkansas,  where 
we  were  very  well  received.  From  thence 
we  came  to  Fort  Prudhomme,  where  M.  de 
la  Salle  fell  dangerously  ill,  which  obliged 
him  to  send  me  forward,  on  the  6th  of  May, 
to  arrange  his  affairs  at  Missilimakinac.  In 
passing  near  the  Ouabache,  I  found  four 
Iroquois,  who  told  us  that  there  were  100 
men  of  their  nation  coming  on  after  them. 
This  gave  us  some  alarm.  There  is  no 
pleasure  in  meeting  warriors  on  one's  road, 
29 


JOURNEYS   OF 

especially  when  they  have  been  unsuccess- 
ful. I  left  them,  and  at  about  twenty 
leagues  from  Tamaraas  we  saw  smoke.  I 
ordered  our  people  to  prepare  their  arms, 
and  we  resolved  to  advance,  expecting  to 
meet  the  Iroquois.  When  we  were  near  the 
smoke,  we  saw  some  canoes,  which  made  us 
think  that  they  could  only  be  Illinois  or 
Tamaraas.  They  were  in  fact  the  latter. 
As  soon  as  they  saw  us  they  came  out  of  the 
wood  in  great  numbers  to  attack  us,  taking 
U!s  for  Iroquois.  I  presented  the  calumet 
to  them — ^they  put  down  their  arms,  and 
conducted  us  to  their  village  without  doing 
us  any  harm.  The  chiefs  held  a  council, 
and,  taking  us  for  Iroquois,  resolved  to 
burn  us ;  and,  but  for  some  Illinois  among 
us,  we  should  have  fared  ill.  They  let  us 
proceed.  We  arrived  about  the  end  of  June, 
1683  (1682),  at  the  River  Chicagou,  and, 
by  the  middle  of  July,  at  Michilimakinac. 
M.  de  la  Salle,  having  recovered,  joined 
us  in  September.  Resolving  to  go  to 
France,  he  ordered  me  to  collect  together 
the  French  who  were  on  the  River  Miamis 
to  construct  the  Fort  of  St.  Louis  in  the 
Illinois.  I  left  with  this  design,  and  when 
I  arrived  at  the  place,  M.  de  la  Salle,  having 
changed  his  mind,  joined  me.^^     They  set 

["  Dec.  30,  1682.    Ci.  Margry  I.,  613.] 
30 


LA    SALLE 

to  work  at  the  fort,  and  it  was  finished  in 
March,  1683.^2 

Ehiring  the  winter  I  gave  all  the  nations 
notice  of  what  we  had  done  to  defend  them 
from  the  Iroquois,  through  whom  they  had 
lost  700  people  in  previous  years.  They 
approved  of  our  good  intentions,  and  estab- 
lished themselves,  to  the  number  of  300 
cabins,  near  the  Fort  Illinois,  as  well  Mi- 
amis  as  Chawanons  [Shawnees], 


TONTY'S  MEMOIR.     PART  II. 
CHAPTER  II 

TONTY  ON  THE  ILLINOIS  AND  MISSISSIPPI  • 

M.  DE  LA  Salle  departed  for  France  in 
the  month  of  September,  leaving  me  to  com- 
mand the  fort.  He  met  on  his  way  the 
Chevalier  de  Bogis  [Baugy],  whom  M.  de 
la  Barre  had  sent  with  letters,  ordering  M. 
de  la  Salle  to  Quebec,  who  had  no  trouble 
in  making  the  journey,  as  he  was  met  with 
on  the  road.  M.  de  la  Salle  wrote  to  me 
to  receive  M.  de  Bogis  well,  which  I  did. 
The  winter  passed,  and  on  the  20th  of 
March,  1684,  being  informed  that  the  Iro- 

"  This  date  is  no  doubt  correct,  for  there  is  a 
letter  of  La  Salle's  in  existence,  dated  at  Fort  St. 
Louis,  April  2,  1683. 

31 


JOURNEYS    OF 

quois  were  about  to  attack  us,  we  prepared 
to  receive  them,  and  dispatched  a  canoe  to 
M.  de  la  Durantaye  [Durantays],  Governor 
of  Missihmakinac,  for  assistance,  in  case 
the  enemy  should  hold  out  against  us  a  long 
time.  The  savages  appeared  on  the  21st,  and 
we  repulsed  them  with  loss.  After  six  days' 
siege  they  retired  with  some  slaves  which 
they  had  made  in  the  neighborhood,  who 
afterwards  escaped  and  came  back  to  the 
fort. 

M.  de  la  Durantaye,  with  Father  Daloy, 
a  Jesuit,  arrived  at  the  Fort  with  about 
sixty  Frenchmen,  whom  they  brought  to 
our  assistance,  and  to  inform  me  of  the 
orders  of  M.  de  la  Barre,  to  leave  the  place. 
They  stated  that  M.  de  Bogis  was  in  pos- 
session of  a  place  belonging  to  M,  de  la 
Foret,  who  had  accompanied  M.  de  la  Salle 
to  France,  and  had  returned  by  order  of 
M.  de  la  Salle  with  a  lettre  de  cachet.  M. 
de  la  Barre  was  directed  to  deliver  up  to 
M.  de  la  Foret  the  lands  belonging  to  the 
Sieur  de  la  Salle,  and  which  were  occupied 
by  others  to  his  prejudice.  He  brought  me 
news  that  M.  de  la  Salle  was  sailing  by 
way  of  the  islands  to  find  the  mouth  of  the 
Mississippi,  and  had  at  court  obtained  a 
company  for  me.^     He  sent  me  orders  to 

['  Cf,  Margry  II.,  27^-372;  HI.,  28-36.] 
32 


LA    SALLE 

command  at  Fort  St.  Louis,  as  Captain  of 
Foot  and  Governor.  We  took  measures 
together,  and  formed  a  company  of  twenty 
men  to  maintain  the  Fort.  M.  de  la  Foret 
went  away  in  the  autumn,  for  Fort  Fronte- 
nac,  and  I  began  my  journey  to  Illinois, 
Being  stopped  by  the  ice,  I  was  obliged  to 
halt  at  Montreal,  where  I  passed  the  win- 
ter. When  M.  de  la  Foret  arrived  there  in 
the  spring,  we  took  new  measures — he  re- 
turned to  Frontenac,  and  I  went  on  to  the 
Illinois,  where  I  arrived  in  June  (1685). 
M.  le  Chevalier  de  Bogis  retired  from  his 
command,  according  to  the  orders  that  I 
brought  him  from  M.  de  la  Barre. 

The  Miamis  having  seriously  defeated  the 
Illinois,  it  cost  us  1,000  dollars  to  reconcile 
these  two  nations,  which  I  did  not  accom- 
plish without  great  trouble.  In  the  autumn 
I  embarked  for  Missilimakinac,  in  order  to 
obtain  news  of  M.  de  la  Salle.  I  heard  there 
that  Monseigneur  de  Denonville  had  suc- 
ceeded M.  de  la  Barre ;  and  by  a  letter  which 
he  did  me  the  honor  to  write  to  me,  he  ex- 
pressed his  wish  to  see  me,  that  we  might 
take  measures  for  a  war  against  the  Iro- 
quois, and  informed  me  that  M.  de  la  Salle 
was  engaged  in  seeking  the  mouth  of  the 
Mississippi  in  the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  Upon 
hearing  this  I  resolved  to  go  in  search  of 

33 


JOURNEYS   OF 

him  with  a  number  of  Canadians,  and  as 
soon  as  I  should  have  found  him,  to  return 
back  to  execute  the  orders  of  M.  de  Denon- 
ville. 

I  embarked,  therefore,  for  the  Ihinois,  on 
St.  Andrew's  Day  (30th  of  October,  1685)  ; 
but  being  stopped  by  the  ice,  I  was  obliged 
to  leave  my  canoe  and  to  proceed  on  by  land. 
After  going  120  leagues,  I  arrived  at  the 
Fort  of  Chicagou,  where  M.  de  la  Duran- 
taye  commanded;  and  from  thence  I  came 
to  Fort  St.  Louis,  where  I  arrived  in  the 
middle  of  January,  1685  (1686).  I  de- 
parted thence  on  the  i6th  [13th]  February, 
with  thirty  [25]  Frenchmen,  and  five  Illi- 
nois and  Chawanons,  for  the  sea,  which  I 
reached  in  Holy  Week  [April  10].  After 
having  passed  the  above-named  nations,  I 
was  very  well  received.  I  sent  out  two 
canoes,  one  towards  the  coast  of  Mexico, 
and  the  other  towards  Carolina,  to  see  if 
they  could  discover  anything.  They  each 
sailed  about  thirty  leagues,  but  proceeded 
no  farther  for  want  of  fresh  water.  They 
reported  that  where  they  had  been  the  land 
began  to  rise.  They  brought  me  a  porpoise 
and  some  oysters.  As  it  would  take  us  five 
months  to  reach  the  French  settlements,  I 
proposed  to  my  men,  that  if  they  would 
trust  to  me  to  follow  the  coast  as  far  as 
34 


LA    SALLE 

Manhatte,  that  by  this  means  we  should 
arrive  shortly  at  Montreal ;  that  we  should 
not  lose  our  time,  because  we  might  dis- 
cover some  fine  country,  and  might  even 
take  some  booty  on  our  way.  Part  of  my 
men  were  willing  to  adopt  my  plan ;  but  as 
the  rest  were  opposed  to  it,  I  decided  to 
return  the  way  I  came. 

The  tide  does  not  rise  more  than  two 
feet  perpendicularly  on  the  seacoast,  and 
the  land  is  very  low  at  the  entrance  of  the 
river.  We  encamped  in  the  place  where 
M.  de  la  Salle  had  erected  the  arms  of  the 
King.  As  they  had  been  thrown  down  by 
the  floods.  I  took  them  five  leagues  further 
up,  and  placed  them  in  a  higher  situation. 
I  put  a  silver  ecu  in  the  hollow  of  a  tree  to 
serve  as  a  mark  of  time  and  place.  We 
left  this  place  on  Easter  Monday.  When  we 
came  opposite  the  Quinipissas  Village,^  the 
chiefs  brought  me  the  calumet,  and  declared 
the  sorrow  they  felt  at  the  treachery  they 

'It  was  at  this  village  (also  called  Bayagoulis) 
that  Iberville,  fourteen  years  after,  found  the  fol- 
lowing letter  from  Tonty  to  La  Salle,  dated  20th 
April,  1685,  which  the  Indian  chiefs  had  carefully 
preserved:  "Sir,  having  found  the  column  on 
which  you  had  placed  the  arms  of  France  thrown 
down,  I  caused  a  new  one  to  be  erected,  about 
seven  leagues  from  the  sea.  All  the  nations  have 
sung  the  calumet.  These  people  fear  us  extremely, 
since  your  attack  upon  their  village.  I  close  by 
saying  that  it  gives  me  great  uneasiness  to  be 
obliged   to   return   under   the   misfortune   of  not 

35 


JOURNEYS    OF 

had  perpetrated  against  me  on  our  first  voy- 
age. I  made  an  alliance  with  them.  Forty 
leagues  higher  up,  on  the  right,  we  discov- 
ered a  village  inland,  with  the  inhabitants 
of  which  we  also  made  an  alliance.  These 
are  the  Oumas,  the  bravest  savages  of  the 
river.  When  we  were  at  Arkansas,  ten  of 
the  Frenchmen  who  accompanied  me  asked 
for  a  settlement  on  the  River  Arkansas,  on 
a  seignory  that  M.  de  la  Salle  had  given 
me  on  our  first  voyage.  I  granted  the  re- 
quest to  some  of  them.  They  remained 
there  to  build  a  house  surrounded  with 
stakes.  The  rest  accompanied  me  to  Illi- 
nois, in  order  to  get  what  they  wanted. 
I  arrived  there  on  St.  John's  Day  (24th 
of  June).  I  made  two  chiefs  of  the  Illi- 
nois embark  with  me  in  my  canoe,  to  go 
and  receive  the  orders  of  M.  de  Denonville, 
and  we  arrived  at  Montreal  by  the  end  of 
July. 

I  left  that  place  at  the  beginning  of  Oc- 
tober to  return  to  the  Illinois.  I  came  there 
on  the  loth  of  October,  and  I  directly  sent 
some  Frenchmen  to  our  savage  allies  to  de- 
clare   war    against    the    Iroquois,    inviting 

having  found  you.  Two  canoes  have  examined 
the  coast  thirtj'  leagues  towards  Mexico,  and 
twenty-five  towards  Florida." 

[Cf.  ]\Iargky  III.,  561,  for  a  report  given  by 
these  Indians  that  La  Salle  had  been  seen  near 
Mobile  Bay.] 

36 


LA   SALLE 

them  to  assemble  at  the  Fort  of  Bonhomme, 
which  they  did  in  the  month  of  April,  1686 
(1687).  The  Sieur  de  la  Foret  was  al- 
ready gone  in  a  canoe  with  30  Frenchmen, 
and  he  was  to  wait  for  me  at  Detroit  till 
the  end  of  May.  I  gave  our  savages  a  dog 
feast  (festin  de  chien)  ;  and  after  having 
declared  to  them  the  will  of  the  King  and 
of  the  Governor,  I  left  with  16  Frenchmen 
and  a  guide  for  the  Miami  nation.  We  en- 
camped half  a  league  from  the  Fort,  to 
wait  for  the  savages  who  might  wish  to  fol- 
low us.  I  left  20  Frenchmen  at  the  Fort, 
and  the  Sieur  de  Bellefontaine  to  command 
there  during  my  absence.  Fifty  Chaganons, 
four  Loups,  and  seven  Miamis  came  to  join 
me  at  night ;  and  the  next  day  more  than 
300  Illinois  came,  but  they  went  back  again, 
with  the  exception  of  149.  This  did  not 
prevent  my  continuing  my  route ;  and  after 
200  leagues  of  journey  by  land,  we  came, 
on  the  19th  of  May,  to  Fort  Detroit.  We 
made  some  canoes  of  elm,  and  I  sent  one 
of  them  to  Fort  St.  Joseph  on  the  high 
ground  above  Detroit,  30  leagues  from 
where  we  were,  to  give  the  Sieur  Dulud, 
the  Commander  of  this  Fort,  information 
of  my  arrival.  The  Sieur  Beauvais  de  Til- 
ly joined  me,  and  afterwards  the  Sieur  de 
la  Foret;  then  the  Sieurs  de  la  Durantaye 
37 


JOURNEYS    OF 

and  Dulud.  I  made  the  French  and  the 
savages  coast  along  the  bay.  After  Le 
Sieur  Durantaye  had  saluted  us,  we  re- 
turned the  salute.  They  had  with  them  30 
English,  whom  they  had  taken  on  the  Lake 
Huron,  at  the  place  at  which  they  had 
reached  it.  We  made  canoes  on  our  jour- 
ney, and  coasted  along  Lake  Erie  to  Niag- 
ara, where  we  made  a  fort  below  the  pas- 
sage to  wait  there  for  news.  On  our  way 
we  took  thirty  more  Englishmen,  who  were 
going  to  Missilimackinac,  commanded  by 
Major  Gregory,  who  was  bringing  back 
some  Huron  and  Outawas  slaves,  taken  by 
the  Iroquois.  Had  it  not  been  for  these  two 
moves  of  good  luck  our  affairs  would  have 
turned  out  badly,  as  we  were  at  war  with 
the  L-oquois.  The  English,  from  the  great 
quantity  of  brandy  which  they  had 
with  them,  would  have  gained  over 
our  allies,  and  thus  we  should  have 
had  all  the  savages  and  the  English  upon 
us  at  once. 

I  sent  the  Sieur  de  la  Foret  forward  to 
inform  M.  de  Denonville  of  everything.  He 
was  at  the  Fort  of  Frontenac,  and  he  joined 
us  at  Fort  Les  Sables.  The  barge  boat  ar- 
rived and  brought  us  provisions.  M.  le 
Monseigneur  sent  us  word  by  it  that  he  ex- 
pected to  arrive  by  the  loth  of  July  at  the 
38 


LA   SALLE 

Marsh,  wich  is  seven  leagues  from  Sonnon- 
touans. 

The  Poutouatamis,  Hourons  and  Ottowas 
joined  us  there  and  built  some  canoes. 
There  was  an  Iroquois  slave  among  them 
whom  I  proposed  to  have  put  to  death  for 
the  insolent  manner  in  which  he  spoke  of 
the  French.  They  paid  no  attention  to  my 
proposal.  Five  leagues  on  our  march  he 
ran  away  and  gave  information  of  our  ap- 
proach, and  of  the  marks  which  our  savages 
bore  to  recognize  each  other,  which  did  us 
great  harm  in  the  ambuscade,  as  will  be  seen. 

On  the  loth  we  arrived  at  the  Marsh  of 
Fort  Les  Sables,  and  the  army  from  below 
arrived  at  the  same  time.  I  received  orders 
to  take  possession  of  a  certain  position, 
which  I  did  with  my  company  and  savages. 
We  then  set  about  building  a  fort.  On  the 
nth  I  went  with  fifty  men  to  reconnoitre 
the  road,  three  miles  from  the  camp.  On 
the  1 2th  the  Fort  was  finished,  and  we  set 
off  for  the  village.  On  the  13th,  half  a 
league  from  the  prairie  (deserts)  we  found 
an  amibuscade,  and  my  company,  who  were 
the  advance  guard,  forced  it.  We  lost  seven 
men,  of  whom  my  lieutenant  was  one,  and 
two  of  my  own  people.  We  were  occupied 
for  seven  days  in  cutting  the  corn  of  the 
four  villages.  We  returned  to  Fort  Les 
39 


JOURNEYS    OF, 

Sables,  and  left  it  to  build  a  fort  at  Niagara. 
From  thence  I  returned  to  Fort  St.  Louis 
with  my  cousin,  the  Sieur  Dulud,  who  re- 
turned  to  his  post  with  eighteen  soldiers 
and  some  savages.  Having  made  half  the 
portage,  which  is  two  leagues  in  length, 
some  Ilourons  who  followed  us  perceived 
some  Iroquois,  and  ran  to  give  us  warning. 
There  were  only  forty  of  us,  and  as  we 
thought  the  enemy  strong,  we  agreed  to 
fall  back  with  our  ammunition  towards  the 
Fort  and  get  a  reinforcement.  We  marched 
all  night,  and,  as  the  Sieur  Dulud  could  not 
leave  his  detachment,  he  begged  me  to  go 
to  the  Marquis,  while  he  lay  in  ambush  in 
a  very  good  position.  I  embarked,  and 
when  I  came  to  the  Fort  the  Marquis  was 
unwilling  to  give  me  any  men,  the  more 
so  as  the  militia  was  gone  away,  and  he 
had  only  some  infantry  remaining  to  escort 
him ;  however,  he  sent  Captain  Valiennes 
and  fifty  men  to  support  us,  who  stayed  at 
the  portage  while  we  crossed  it.  We  em- 
barked, and  when  clear  of  the  land  we  per- 
ceived the  Iroquois  on  the  banks  of  the  lake. 
We  passed  over,  and  I  left  the  Sieur  Dulud 
at  his  post  at  Detroit.  I  went  in  company 
with  the  Reverend  Father  Crevier  as  far  as 
Missilimackinac,  and  afterwards  to  Fort  St. 
JLouis. 

40 


LA    SALLE 

There  I  found  M.  Cavelier,  a  priest;  his 
nephew,  and  the  Father  Anastatius,  a  Recol- 
let,  and  two  men.  They  concealed  from  me 
the  assassination  of  M.  de  la  Salle,  and  upon 
their  assuring-  me  that  he  was  on  the  Gulf 
of  Mexico,  in  good  health,  I  received  them 
as  if  they  had  been  M.  de  la  Salle  himself 
and  lent  them  more  than  seven  hundred 
francs  (28/.).  M.  Cavelier  departed  in  the 
spring,  1687  (1688),  to  give  an  account  of 
his  voyage  at  court. 

M.  de  la  Foret  came  here  in  the  autumn 
and  went  away  in  the  following  spring.  On 
the  7th  of  April  one  named  Coutoure 
brought  me  two  Akansas,  who  danced  the 
calumet.  They  informed  me  of  the  death  of 
M.  de  la  Salle,  with  all  the  circumstances 
which  they  had  heard  from  the  lips  of  M. 
Cavelier,  who  had  fortunately  discovered 
the  house  I  had  built  at  Arkansas,  where 
the  said  Coutoure  stayed  with  three  French- 
men. He  told  me  that  the  fear  of  not  ob- 
taining from  me  what  he  desired  had  made 
him  conceal  the  death  of  his  brother,  but 
that  he  had  told  them  of  it. 

M.  Cavelier  told  me  that  the  Cadadioquis 
had  proposed  to  accompany  him  if  he  would 
go  and  fight  against  the  Spaniards.  He 
had  objected  on  account  of  there  being  only 
fourteen  Frenchmen.  They  replied  that 
41 


JOURNEYS    OF 

their  nation  was  numerous,  that  they  only 
wanted  a  few  musqueteers,  and  that  the 
Spaniards  had  much  money,  which  they 
(the  French)  should  take;  and  as  for  them- 
selves, they  only  wished  to  keep  the  women 
and  children  as  slaves.  Coutoure  told  me 
that  a  young  man  whom  M.  Cavelier  had 
left  at  Arkansas  had  assured  him  that  this 
was  very  true.  I  would  not  undertake  any- 
thing without  the  consent  of  the  Governor 
of  Canada.  I  sent  the  said  Coutoure  to  the 
French  remaining  in  Nicondiche  ^  to  get  all 
the  information  he  could.  He  set  ofif,  and 
at  one  hundred  leagues  from  the  Fort  was 
wrecked,  and,  having  lost  everything,  re- 
turned. 

In  the  interval  M.  de  Denonville  directed 
me  to  let  the  savages  do  as  they  liked,  and 
to  do  nothing  against  the  Iroquois.  He 
at  the  same  time  informed  me  that  war  was 
declared  against  Spain.  Upon  this  I  came 
to  the  resolution  of  going  to  Naodiche,  to 
execute  what  M.  Cavelier  had  ventured  to 
undertake,  and  to  bring  back  M.  de  la 
Salle's  men,  who  were  on  the  seacoast,  not 
knowing  of  the  misfortune  that  had  befallen 
him.  I  set  off  on  the  3d  of  October  and 
joined  my  cousin,  who  was  gone  on  before, 

['  Nivondiche,  Naodiche,  with  other  spellings, 
are  probably  names  for  the  Cenis.] 
42 


LA   SALLE 

and  who  was  to  accompany  me,  as  he  ex- 
pected that  M.  de  la  Foret  would  come  and 
take  the  command  in  my  absence ;  but  as  he 
did  not  come,  I  sent  my  cousin  back  to  com- 
mand the  Fort. 

I  bought  a  larger  boat  than  my  own.  We 
embarked  five  Frenchmen,  one  Chaganon 
and  two  slaves.  We  arrived  on  the  17th  at 
an  Illinois  village  at  the  mouth  of  their 
river.  They  had  just  come  from  fighting- 
the  Osages,  and  had  lost  thirteen  men,  but 
brought  back  one  hundred  and  thirty  pris- 
oners. We  reached  the  village  of  the  Kap- 
pas on  the  1 6th  of  January,  where  we  were 
received  with  demonstrations  of  joy,  and 
for  four  days  there  was  nothing  but  danc- 
ing, feasting  and  masquerading  after  their 
manner.  They  danced  the  calumet  for  me, 
which  confirmed  the  last  alliance.  On  the 
20th  of  January  we  came  to  Tongenga,  and 
they  wished  to  entertain  us  as  the  Kappas 
had  done ;  but,  being  in  haste,  I  deferred  it 
until  another  time.  I  did  the  same  with  the 
Torremans  on  my  arrival,  on  the  22d.  Leav- 
ing my  crew,  I  set  off  the  next  day  for  As- 
sotoue,  where  my  commercial  house  is. 
These  savages  had  not  yet  seen  me,  as  they 
lived  on  a  branch  of  the  river  coming  from 
the  west.  They  did  their  best,  giving  me 
two  women  of  the  Cadadoquis  nation,  to 
43 


JOURNEYS    OF 

whom  I  was  going.  I  returned  to  Torre- 
mans  on  the  26th,  and  brought  there  two 
boats.  We  went  away  on  the  27th.  On  the 
29th,  finding  one  of  our  men  asleep  when 
-on  duty  as  sentinel,  I  reprimanded  him,  and 
he  left  me.  I  sent  two  of  my  people  to 
Coroa,  to  spare  myself  the  fatigue  of  drag- 
ging on  with  our  crew  six  leagues  inland. 
The  Frenchman,  with  whom  I  had  quar- 
reled, made  with  them  a  third.  We  slept 
opposite  the  rivers  of  the  Taencas,  which 
run  from  Arkansas.  They  came  there  on 
the  2d,  this  being  the  place  of  meeting.  My 
Chagenon  went  out  hunting  on  the  other 
side  of  the  river,  where  he  was  attacked  by 
three  Chacoumas.  He  killed  one  of  them, 
and  was  slightly  wounded  by  an  arrow  on 
the  left  breast. 

On  the  4th  the  rest  of  the  party  arrived. 
On  the  5th,  being  opposite  Taencas,  the 
men  whom  I  had  sent  to  Coroa  not  having 
brought  any  news  of  the  two  Frenchmen 
whom  I  was  anxious  about,  I  sent  them  to 
Natches.  They  found  that  this  nation  had 
killed  the  two  men.  They  retired  as  well 
as  they  could,  making  the  savages  believe 
that  they  were  numerous.  They  arrived  on 
the  8th  of  February.  We  set  off  on  the  12th 
with  twelve  Taencas,  and  after  a  voyage  of 
twelve  leagues  to  the  northwest  we  left  our 
44 


LA    SALLE 

boat  and  made  twenty  leagues  portage,  and 
on  the  17th  of  February,  1690,  came  to 
Nachitoches.  They  made  us  stay  at  the 
place,  which  is  in  the  midst  of  the  three 
villages  called  Nachitoches,  Ouasita  and 
Capiche.  The  chiefs  of  the  three  nations 
assembled,  and  before  they  began  to  speak 
the  30  Taencas  who  were  with  me  got 
up  and,  leaving  their  arms,  went  to  the  tem- 
ple, to  show  how  sincerely  they  wished  to 
make  a  solid  peace.  After  having  taken 
their  God  to  witness,  they  asked  for  friend- 
ship. I  made  them  some  presents  in  the 
name  of  the  Taencas.  They  remained  some 
days  in  the  village  to  traffic  with  salt,  which 
these  nations  got  from  a  salt  lake  in  the 
neighborhood.  After  their  departure  they 
gave  me  guides  to  Yataches,  and  after  as- 
cending the  river,  always  towards  the  north- 
west, about  thirty  leagues,  we  found  fifteen 
cabins  of  Natches,  who  received  us  pretty 
well.  We  arrived  on  the  i6th  of  March  at 
Yataches,  about  forty  leagues  from  thence. 
Tlie  three  villages  of  Yataches,  Nadas  and 
Choye  are  together.  As  they  knew  of  our 
arrival,  they  came  three  leagues  tO'  meet  us 
with  refreshments,  and  on  joining  us  we 
went  together  to  their  villages.  The  chief 
made  many  feasts  for  us.  I  gave  presents 
to  them,  and  asked  for  guides  to  the  Cada- 
45 


JOURNEYS    OF 

doquis.  They  were  very  unwilling  to  give 
us  any,  as  they  had  murdered  three  ambas- 
sadors about  four  days  before  who  came  to 
their  nation  to  make  peace.  However,  by 
dint  of  entreaties,  and  assuring  them  that 
no  harm  would  happen  to  their  people,  they 
granted  me  five  men,  and  we  got  to  Cada- 
doquis  on  the  28th.'*  At  the  place  where 
we  were  encamped  we  discovered  the  trail 
of  men  and  horses.  The  next  day  some 
horsemen  came  to  reconnoitre  us,  and,  after 
speaking  to  the  wife  of  the  chief,  whom  I 
brought  back  with  me,  carried  back  the 
news.  The  next  day  a  woman,  who  gov- 
erned this  nation,  came  to  visit  me  with  the 
principal  persons  of  the  village.  She  wept 
over  me,  demanding  revenge  for  the  death 
of  her  husband,  and  of  the  husband  of  the 
woman  whom  I  was  bringing  back,  both  of 
■whom  had  been  killed  by  the  Osages.  To 
take  advantage  of  everything,  I  promised 
that  their  death  should  be  avenged.  We 
went  together  to  their  temple,  and  after  the 
priests  had  invoked  their  God  for  a  quarter 
of  an  hour  they  conducted  me  to  the  cabin 
of  their  chief.  Before  entering  they  washed 
my  face  with  water,  w-hich  is  a  ceremony 
among  them.    During  the  time  I  was  there 

[*The  report  of  Tonty's  visit  reached  the 
Spaniards  under  Teran  the  following  year.  Cf. 
Tex.  Hist.  Quar.  V.,  191.] 

46 


LA    SALLE  ^ 

I  learned  from  them  that  eighty  leagues  off 
were  seven  Frenchmen  whom  M.  Cavelier 
had  left.  I  hoped  to  finish  my  troubles  by 
rejoining  them,  but  the  Frenchmen  who  ac- 
companied me,  tired  of  the  voyage,  would 
go  no  further.  They  were  unmanageable 
persons,  over  whom  I  could  exercise  no 
authority  in  this  distant  country.  I  was 
obliged  to  give  way.  All  that  I  could  do 
was  to  engage  one  of  them,  with  a  savage, 
to  accompany  me  to  the  village  of  Nao- 
vediche,  where  I  hoped  to  find  the  seven 
Frenchmen.  I  told  those  who  abandoned 
me  that,  to  prevent  the  savages  knowing 
this,  it  was  best  to  say  that  I  had  sent  them 
away  to  carry  back  the  news  of  my  arrival, 
so  that  the  savages  should  not  suspect  our 
disunion. 

The  Cadadoquis  are  united  with  two 
other  villages  called  Natchitoches  and  Na- 
soui,  situated  on  the  Red  River.  All  the  na- 
tions of  this  tribe  speak  the  same  language. 
Their  cabins  are  covered  with  straw,  and 
they  are  not  united  in  villages,  but  their 
huts  are  distant  one  from  the  other.  Their 
fields  are  beautiful.  They  fish  and  hunt. 
There  is  plenty  of  game,  but  few  cattle 
{hceufs).  They  wage  cruel  war  with  each 
other,  hence  their  villages  are  but  thinly 
populated.  I  never  found  that  they  did  any 
47j 


JOURNEYS   OF 

Work,  except  making  very  fine  bows,  which 
they  make  a  traffic  with  distant  nations. 
The  Cadadoquis  possess  about  thirty  horses, 
which  they  call  "cavali"  (sp.  caballo,  a 
horse).  The  men  and  women  are  tattooed 
in  the  face  and  all  over  the  body.  They  call 
this  river  the  Red  River,  because,  in  fact,  it 
deposits  a  sand  which  makes  the  w^ater  as 
red  as  blood.  I  am  not  acquainted  with 
their  manners,  having  only  seen  them  in 
passing. 

I  left  this  place  on  the  6th  of  April,  di- 
recting our  route  southwards,  with  a 
Frenchman,  a  Chaganon  (Shawnee),  a  lit- 
tle slave  of  mine,  and  five  of  their  savages, 
■whom  they  gave  me  as  guides  to  Naoua- 
diche.  When  I  went  away  I  left  in  the 
hands  of  the  wife  of  the  chief  a  small  box, 
in  which  I  had  put  some  ammunition.  On 
our  road  we  found  some  Naouadiches  sav- 
ages hunting,  who  assured  me  that  the 
Frenchmen  were  staying  with  them.  This 
gave  me  great  pleasure,  hoping  to  succeed 
in  my  object  of  finding  them.  On  the  19th 
the  Frenchman  with  me  lost  himself.  I 
sent  the  savages  who  were  with  me  to  look 
for  him.  He  came  back  on  the  21st,  and 
told  me  that,  having  lost  our  trail,  he  was 
near  drowning  himself  in  crossing  a  little 
river  on  a  piece  of  timber.  His  bag  slipped 
48 


LA   SALLE 

off,  and  thus  all  oiir  powder  was  lost,  which 
very  much  annoyed  me,  as  we  were  reduced 
to  sixty  pounds  of  ammunition.  On  the  23d 
we  slept  half  a  league  from  the  village,  and 
the  chiefs  came  to  visit  us  at  night.  I  asked 
them  about  the  Frenchmen.  They  told  me 
that  they  had  accompanied  their  chiefs  to 
fight  against  the  Spaniards,  seven  days' 
journey  off;  that  the  Spaniards  had  sur- 
rounded them  with  their  cavalry,  and  that 
iheir  chief  having  spoken  in  their  favor, 
the  Spaniards  had  given  them  horses  and 
arms.  Some  of  the  others  told  me  that  the 
Quanouatins  had  killed  three  of  them,  and 
that  the  four  others  were  gone  in  search  of 
iron  arrow-heads.  I  did  not  doubt  but  they 
had  murdered  them.  I  told  them  that  they 
had  killed  the  Frenchmen.  Directly  all  the 
women  began  to  cry,  and  thus  I  saw  that 
what  I  had  said  was  true.  I  would  not, 
therefore,  accept  the  calumet.  I  told  the 
chief  I  wanted  four  horses  for  my  return, 
and,  having  given  him  seven  hatchets  and 
a  string  of  large  glass  beads,  I  received  the 
next  day  four  Spanish  horses,  two  of  which 
were  marked  on  the  haunch  with  an  R  and 
a  crown  (couronne  fermee)  and  another 
with  an  N.  Horses  are  very  common 
among  them.  There  is  not  a  cabin  which 
has  not  four  or  five.  As  this  nation  is  some- 
49 


JOURNEYS    OF 

times  at  peace  and  sometimes  at  war  with 
the  neighboring  Spaniards,  they  take  ad- 
vantage of  a  war  to  carry  off  the  horses. 
We  harnessed  ours  as  well  as  we  could  and 
departed  on  the  29th,  greatly  vexed  that  we 
could  not  continue  our  route  as  far  as  M. 
de  la  Salle's  camp.  We  were  unable  to  ob- 
tain guides  from  this  nation  to  take  us 
there,  though  not  more  than  eighty  leagues 
off,  besides  being  without  ammunition, 
owing  to  the  accident  which  I  related  be- 
fore. 

It  was  at  the  distance  of  three  days*  jour- 
ney from  hence  that  M.  de  la  Salle  was  mur- 
dered. I  will  say  a  few  words  of  what  I 
have  heard  of  this  misfortune.  M.  de  la 
Salle  having  landed  beyond  the  Mississippi, 
on  the  side  of  Mexico,  about  eighty  leagues 
from  the  mouth  of  the  river,  and  losing  his 
vessels  on  the  coast,  saved  a  part  of  the 
cargo,  and  began  to  march  along  the  sea- 
shore in  search  of  the  Mississippi.  Meet- 
ing with  many  obstacles  on  account  of  the 
bad  roads,  he  resolved  to  go  to  Illinois  by 
land,  and  loaded  several  horses  with  his 
baggage.  The  Father  Anastatius,  M.  Cave- 
lier,  a  priest,  his  brother;  M.  Cavalier,  his 
nephew  ;  M.  Moranget,  a  relative  ;  MM.  Du- 
hault  and  Lanctot  ^  and  several  Frenchmen 

[°  Otherwise  spelled  Duhaut  and  Liotot.] 
50 


LA    SALLE 

accompanied  him,  with  a  Chaganon  savage. 
When  three  days'  journey  from  the  Naou- 
diche,  and  short  of  provisions,  he  sent  Mo^ 
ranget,  his  servant,  and  the  Chaganon  to 
hunt  in  a  small  wood,  with  orders  to  return 
in  the  evening.  When  they  had  killed  some 
buffaloes  they  stopped  to  dry  the  meat.  M. 
de  la  Salle  was  uneasy,  and  asked  the 
Frenchmen  who  among  them  would  go  and 
look  for  them.  Duhault  and  Lanctot  had 
for  a  long  time  determined  to  kill  M.  de  la 
Salle,  because,  during  the  journey  along  the 
seacoast,  he  had  compelled  the  brother  of 
Lanctot,  who  was  unable  to  keep  up,  to  re- 
turn to  the  camp,  and  who,  when  returning 
alone,  was  massacred  by  the  savages.  Lanc- 
tot vowed  to  God  that  he  would  never  for- 
give his  brother's  death.  As  in  long  jour- 
neys there  are  always  discontented  persons, 
he  easily  found  partisans.  He  offered,  there- 
fore, with  them,  to  search  for  M.  Moranget 
in  order  to  have  an  opportunity  to  execute 
their  design.  Having  found  the  men,  he  told 
them  that  M.  de  la  Salle  was  uneasy  about 
them;  but  the  others  showing  that  they 
could  not  set  off  till  the  next  day,  it  was 
agreed  to  sleep  there.  After  supper  they 
arranged  the  order  of  the  watch.  It  was 
to  begin  with  M.  de  Moranget ;  after  him 
was  to  follow  the  servant  of  M.  de  la  Salle, 
51 


JOURNEYS   OF 

and  then  the  Chaganon.  After  they  had 
kept  their  watch  and  were  asleep  they  were 
massacred,  as  persons  attached  to  M.  de  la 
Salle.  At  daybreak  they  heard  the  reports 
of  pistols,  which  were  fired  as  signals  by  M. 
de  la  Salle,  who  was  coming  with  the 
Father  Recollet  in  search  of  them.  The 
wretches  laid  wait  for  him,  placing  M.  Du- 
hault's  servant  in  front.  When  M.  de  la 
Salle  came  near  he  asked  where  M.  Moran- 
get  was.  The  servant,  keeping  on  his  hat, 
answered  that  he  was  behind.  As  M.  de  la 
Salle  advanced  to  remind  him  of  his  duty 
he  received  three  balls  in  his  head  and  fell 
down  dead.  The  Father  Recollet  was 
frightened,  and,  thinking  that  he  also  was 
to  be  killed,  threw  himself  on  his  knees  and 
begged  for  a  quarter  of  an  hour  to  prepare 
his  soul.  They  replied  that  they  were  will- 
ing to  save  his  life.  They  went  on  together 
to  where  M.  Cavelier  was  and,  as  they  ad- 
vanced, shouted  :  "Down  with  your  arms." 
M.  de  Cavelier,  on  hearing  the  noise,  came 
forward,  and  when  told  of  the  death  of  his 
brother  threw  himself  on  his  knees,  making 
the  same  request  that  had  been  made  by  the 
Father  Recollet.  They  granted  him  his  life. 
He  asked  to  go  and  bury  the  body  of  his 
brother,  which  was  refused.  Such  was  the 
end  of  one  of  the  greatest  men  of  the  age. 
52 


LA    SALLE 

He  was  a  man  of  wonderful  ability,  and 
capable  of  undertaking  any  discovery.  His 
death  much  grieved  the  three  Naoudiches 
whom  M.  de  la  Salle  had  found  hunting, 
and  who  accompanied  him  to  the  village. 
After  the  murderers  had  committed  this 
crime  they  seized  all  the  baggage  of  the  de- 
ceased and  continued  their  journey  to 
the  village  of  Naoudiches,  where  they 
found  two  Frenchmen  who  had  deserted 
from  M.  de  la  Salle  two  years  before  and 
had  taken  up  their  abode  with  these  sav- 
ages. 

After  staying  some  days  in  this  village 
the  savages  proposed  to  them  to  go  to  war 
against  the  Quanoouatinos,  to  which  the 
Frenchmen  agreed,  lest  the  savages  should 
ill-treat  them.  As  they  were  ready  to  set 
off,  an  English  [German]  buccaneer,  whom 
M.  de  la  Salle  had  always  liked,  begged  of 
the  murderers  that,  as  they  were  going  to 
war  with  the  savages,  they  would  give  him 
and  his  comrades  some  shirts.  They  flatly 
refused,  which  offended  him,  and  he  could 
not  help  expressing  this  to  his  comrades. 
They  agreed  together  to  make  a  second  de- 
mand, and  if  refused  to  revenge  the  death 
of  M.  de  la  Salle.  This  they  did  some  days 
afterwards.  The  Englishman,  taking  two 
pistols  in  his  belt,  accompanied  by  a  French- 
53 


JOURNEYS    OF 

man  with  his  gun,  went  deliberately  to  the 
cabin  of  the  murderers,  whom  they  found 
were  out  shooting  with  bows  and  arrows. 
Lanctot  met  them,  and  wished  them  good- 
day  and  asked  how  they  were.  They  an- 
swered, "pretty  well,  and  that  it  was  not 
necessary  to  ask  how  they  did,  as  they  were 
always  eating  turkeys  and  good  venison." 
Then  the  Englishman  asked  for  some  am- 
munition and  shirts,  as  they  were  provided 
with  everything.  They  replied  that  M.  de 
la  Salle  was  their  debtor,  and  that  what 
they  had  taken  was  theirs.  "You  will  not, 
then?"  asked  the  Englishman.  "No,"  re- 
plied they.  On  which  the  Englishman  said 
to  one  of  them,  "You  are  a  wretch ;  you 
murdered  my  master,"  and,  firing  his  pistol, 
killed  him  on  the  spot.  Duhault  tried  to  get 
into  his  cabin,  but  the  Frenchman  shot  him 
also  with  a  pistol  in  the  loins,  which  threw 
him  on  the  ground.  M.  Cavelier  and 
Father  Anastatius  ran  to  his  assistance.  Du- 
hault had  hardly  time  to  confess  himself,  for 
the  father  had  but  just  given  him  absolution 
when  he  was  finished  by  another  pistol  shot 
at  the  request  of  the  savages,  who  could  not 
endure  that  he  should  live  after  having 
killed  their  chief.  The  Englishman  took 
possession  of  everything.  He  gave  a  share 
to  M.  Cavelier,  who,  having  found  my  abode 
54 


LA    SALLE 

in  Arkansas,  went  from  thence  to  Illinois. 
The  Englishman  remained  at  Naoudiches. 

We  reached  Cadadoquis  on  the  loth  of 
May.  We  stayed  there  to  rest  our  horses, 
and  went  away  on  the  17th  with  a  guide, 
who  was  to  take  us  to  the  village  of  Co- 
roas.*'  After  four  days'  journey  he  left  us, 
in  consequence  of  an  accident  which  hap- 
pened in  crossing  a  marsh.  As  we  were 
leading  our  horses  by  the  bridle  he  fancied 
he  was  pursued  by  an  alligator  and  tried 
to  climb  a  tree.  In  his  hurry  he  entangled 
the  halter  of  my  horse,  which  was  drowned. 
This  induced  him  to  leave  us  without  say- 
ing anything,  lest  we  should  punish  him 
for  the  loss  of  the  horse.  We  were  thus 
left  in  great  difficulty  respecting  the  road 
which  we  were  to  take.  I  forgot  to  say 
that  the  savages  who  have  horses  use  them 
both  for  war  and  for  hunting.  They  make 
pointed  saddles,  wooden  stirrups,  and  body- 
coverings  of  several  skins,  one  over  the 
other,  as  a  protection  from  arrows.  They 
arm  the  breast  of  their  horses  with  the 
same  material,  a  proof  that  they  are  not  very 
far  from  the  Spaniards.  When  our  guide 
was  gone  I  told  the  Chaganon  to  take  the 
lead.  All  he  said  in  answer  was  that  that 
was  my  business ;  and,  as  I  was  unable  to 

[*  Probably  near  Natchez.] 

55 


JOURNEYS   OF 

influence  him,  I  was  obliged  to  act  as 
guide.  I  directed  our  course  to  the  south- 
east, and  after  about  forty  leagues'  march, 
crossing  seven  rivers,  we  found  the  River 
Coroas.  We  made  a  raft  to  explore  the 
other  side  of  the  river,  but  found  there  no 
dry  land.  We  resolved  tO'  abandon  our 
horses,  as  it  was  impossible  to  take  them 
on  upon  account  of  the  great  inundation. 
In  the  evening,  as  we  were  preparing  to 
depart,  we  saw  some  savages.  We  called 
to  them  in  vain — they  ran  away,  and  we 
were  unable  to  come  up  with  them.  Two 
of  their  dogs  came  to  us,  which,  with  two 
of  our  own,  we  embarked  the  next  day  on 
our  raft,  and  left  our  horses.  We  crossed 
fifty  leagues  of  flooded  country.  The  water 
where  it  was  least  deep  reached  halfway  up 
the  legs ;  and  in  all  this  tract  we  found  only 
one  little  island  of  dry  land,  where  we  killed 
a  bear  and  dried  its  flesh.  It  would  be  dif- 
ficult to  give  an  idea  of  the  trouble  we  had 
to  get  out  of  this  miserable  country,  where 
it  rained  night  and  day.  We  were  obliged 
to  sleep  on  the  trunks  of  two  great  trees, 
placed  together,  and  to  make  our  fire  on 
the  trees,  to  eat  our  dogs,  and  to  carry  our 
baggage  across  large  tracts  covered  with 
reeds.  In  short,  I  never  suffered  so  much 
in  my  life  as  in  this  journey  to  the  Missis- 
56 


LA    SALLE 

sippi,  which  we  reached  on  the  nth  of  July. 
Finding  where  we  were,  and  that  we  were 
only  thirty  leagues  from  Coroas,  we  re- 
solved to  go  there,  although  we  had  never 
set  foot  in  that  village.  We  arrived  there 
on  the  evening  of  the  14th.  We  had  not 
eaten  for  three  days,  as  we  could  find 
no  animal,  on  account  of  the  great  flood. 
I  found  two  of  the  Frenchmen  who  had 
abandoned  me  at  this  village.  The  savages 
received  me  very  well  and  sympathized  with 
us  in  the  sufferings  we  had  undergone. 
During  three  days  they  did  not  cease  feast- 
ing us,  sending  men  out  hunting  every  day, 
and  not  sparing  their  turkeys.  I  left  them 
on  the  20th,  and  reached  Arkansas  on  the 
31st,  where  I  caught  the  fever,  which 
obliged  me  to  stay  there  till  the  nth  of  Au- 
gust, when  I  left.  The  fever  lasted  until 
we  got  to  the  Illinois,  in  September,  1690. 

I  cannot  describe  the  beauty  of  all  the 
countries  I  have  mentioned.  If  I  had  had  a 
better  knowledge  of  them  I  should  be  better 
able  to  say  what  special  advantages  might 
be  derived  from  them.  As  for  the 
Mississippi,  it  could  produce  every  year 
20,000  ecus'  worth  of  peltries,  an  abun- 
dance of  lead,  and  wood  for  shipbuilding. 
A  silk  trade  might  be  established  there,  and 
a  port  for  the  protection  of  vessels  and 
57 


JOURNEYS    OF 

the  maintenance  of  a  communication  with 
the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  Pearls  might  be  found 
there.  If  wheat  will  not  grow  at  the  lower 
part  of  the  river,  the  upper  country  would 
furnish  it;  and  the  islands  might  be  supn 
plied  with  everything  they  need,  such  as 
planks,  vegetables,  grain  and  salt  beef.  If 
I  had  not  been  hurried  in  making  this  nar- 
rative I  should  have  stated  many  circum- 
stances which  would  have  gratified  the 
reader,  but  the  loss  of  my  notes  during  my 
travels  is  the  reason  why  this  relation  is 
not  such  as  I  could  have  wished. 

Henry  de  Tonty. 

petition  ^  of  the  chevalier  de  tonty  to 
the  count  de  pontchartrain,  min- 
ister of  marine. 

monseigneur, 

Henry  de  Tonty  humbly  represents  to 
your  Highness  that  he  entered  the  army  as 
a  cadet,  and  was  employed  in  that  capacity 
in  the  years  1668  and  1669;  and  that  he 
afterwards  served  as  a  garde  marine  four 
years,  at  Marseilles  and  Toulon,  and  made 
seven  campaigns,  that  is,  four  on  board 
ships  of  war  and  three  in  the  galleys.  While 

'  This  petition  is  without  date,  but  was  prob- 
ably written  about  the  year  1690.  [Cf.  Sparks, 
Amer.  Biog.,  2d  Ser.,  I.,  203,  note.] 

58 


LA    SALLE 

at  Messina  he  was  made  captain-lieutenant 
to  the  maitre  de  camp  of  20,000.  When  the 
enemy  attacked  the  post  of  Libisso  his  right 
hand  was  shot  away  by  a  grenade,  and  he 
was  taken  prisoner  and  conducted  to  Me- 
tasse,  where  he  was  detained  six  months, 
and  then  exchanged  for  the  son  of  the  gov- 
ernor of  that  place.  He  then  went  to  France, 
to  obtain  some  favor  from  his  Majesty,  and 
the  King  granted  him  three  hundred  livres. 
He  returned  to  the  service  in  Sicily,  made 
the  campaign  as  a  volunteer  in  the  galleys, 
and,  when  the  troops  were  discharged,  be- 
ing unable  to  obtain  employment,  he  solic- 
ited at  court,  but  being  unsuccessful,  on  ac- 
count of  the  general  peace,  he  decided,  in 
1678,  to  join  the  late  Monsieur  de  la  Salle, 
in  order  to  accompany  him  in  the  discov- 
eries of  Mexico,  during  which,  until  1682, 
he  was  the  only  officer  who  did  not  abandon 
him. 

These  discoveries  being  finished,  he  re- 
mained, in  1683,  commandant  of  Fort  St. 
Louis  of  the  Illinois;  and  in  1684  he  was 
there  attacked  by  two  hundred  Iroquois, 
whom  he  repulsed,  with  great  loss  on  their 
side.  During  the  same  year  he  repaired  to 
Quebec,  at  the  command  of  M.  de  la  Barre. 
In  1685  he  returned  to  the  Illinois,  accord- 
ing to  the  orders  which  he  received  from 
59 


JOURNEYS    OF 

the  court,  and  from  M.  de  la  Salle,  as  a  cap- 
tain of  foot  in  a  Marine  Detachment,  and 
governor  of  Fort  St.  Louis.  In  1686  he 
went,  with  forty  men  in  canoes,  at  his  own 
expense,  as  far  as  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  to 
seek  for  M.  de  la  Salle.  Not  being  able  to 
find  him  there,  he  returned  to  Montreal,  and 
put  himself  under  the  orders  of  Monsieur 
Denonville,  to  engage  in  the  war  with  the 
Iroquois.  On  his  return  to  the  Illinois  he 
marched  two  hundred  leagues  by  land,  and 
as  far  in  canoes,  and  joined  the  army,  when, 
being  at  the  head  of  a  company  of  Cana- 
dians, he  forced  an  ambuscade  of  the  Tson- 
nonthouans. 

The  campaign  being  over,  he  returned  to 
the  Illinois,  whence  he  departed,  in  1689,  to 
go  in  search  of  the  remains  of  M.  de  la 
Salle's  people,^  but,  being  deserted  by  his 
men,  and  unable  to  execute  his  design,  he 
was  compelled  to  relinquish  it,  when  he  had 
arrived  within  seven  days'  march  of  the 
Spaniards.  Ten  months  were  spent  in  go- 
ing and  returning.  As  he  now  finds  him- 
self without  employment,  he  prays  that,  in 
consideration  of  his  voyages  and  heavy  ex- 

"  At  the  Bay  of  St.  Bernard,  and  who  were  there 
massacred  by  the  Indians,  except  three  sons  and 
a  daughter  of  M.  Talon,  and  a  young  Frenchman 
named  Eustache  de  Breman,  who  were  carried 
into  captivity,  and  afterwards  rescued  by  the 
Spaniards. 

60 


LA   SALLE 

penses,  and  considering,  also,  that  during 
his  service  of  seven  years  as  captain  he  has 
not  received  any  pay,  your  Highness  will 
be  pleased  to  obtain  for  him,  from  his  Ma- 
jesty, a  company,  that  he  may  continue  his 
services  in  this  country,  where  he  has  not 
ceased  to  harass  the  Iroquois,  by  enlisting 
the  Illinois  against  them  in  his  Majesty's 
cause. 

And  he  will  continue  his  prayers  for  the 
health  of  your  Highness. 

Henry  de  Tonty.' 

•  The  last  that  is  known  of  the  brave  and  gen- 
erous De  Tonty  is  that  he  joined  Iberville  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Mississippi,  about  the  year  1700,  and 
that  two  years  afterwards  he  was  employed  on  a 
mission  to  the  Chickasaw  nation.  No  notice  has 
ever  been  taken  of  his  death.  "All  the  facts  that 
can  be  ascertained  concerning  De  Tonty  are  such 
as  give  a  highly  favorable  impression  of  his  char- 
acter, both  as  an  officer  and  a  man.  His  constan- 
cy and  his  steady  devotion  to  La  Salle  are  marked 
not  only  by  a  strict  obedience  to  orders,  but  by 
a  faithful  friendship  and  chivalrous  generosity. 
His  courage  and  address  were  strikingly  exhib- 
ited in  his  intercourse  with  the  Indians,  as  well 
in  war  as  in  peace ;  but  his  acts  were  performed 
where  there  were  few  to  observe  and  fewer  to 
record  them.  Hence  it  is  that  historians  have 
done  him  but  partial  justice." 

Tonty  disavowed  to  Iberville  and  Father  Marest 
the  publication  of  a  work  published  in  Paris,  1697, 
entitled  "Dernieres  Decouvertes  dans  I'Amerique 
Septentrionale,  de  M.  dela  Salle,  par  M.  le  Cheva- 
lier Tonti."  which  has  been  since  reprinted,  under 
the  title  of  "Relation  de  la  Louisiane  ou  du  Mis-» 
sissippi,  par  le  Chevalier  de  Tonti." 

Tonty  must  be  ranked  next  to  La  Salle,  who 
61 


JOURNEYS   OF 

Nothing  can  be  more  true  than  the  account 
given  by  the  Sieur  de  Tonty  in  this  peti- 
tion; and  should  his  Majesty  reinstate  the 
seven  companies  which  have  been  disbanded 
in  this  country,  there  will  be  justice  in 
granting  one  of  them  to  him,  or  some  other 
recompense  for  the  services  which  he  has 
rendered,  and  which  he  is  now  returning  to 
render,  at  Fort  St.  Louis  in  the  Illinois. 

Frontenac. 

tonty's  account  of  the  route  from  the 
illinois,  by  the  river  mississippi^  to 
the  gulf  of  mexico. 

Sir, 
As  the  map  accompanying  this  has  been 
made  in  haste,  without  proper  calculations 
and  measurements,  you  may  probably  desire 
to  make  one;  and  for  this  purpose  I  will 
state  of  the  Mississippi  that  though  it  winds 
much,  we  reckon  from  the  Falls  of  St.  An- 
thony to  the  sea  eight  hundred  leagues,  and 
you  perceive  from  the  note  that  its  direction 
is  north  and  south.  The  distance  of  the  vil- 
lages, reckoning  from  the  mouth  of  the 
River  Illinois  to  the  sea,  or  ascending  from 

contributed  the  most  towards  the  exploration  and 
settlement  of  the  Mississippi  Valley. 

[The  editor  is  informed  that  Tonty's  grave  has 
recently  been  discovered  in  Alabama.] 
62 


LA    SALLE 

the  sea  as  far  as  the  River  Quiouentagoet 
(on  the  banks  of  which  is  a  village  contain- 
ing eighty  Illinois  cabins),  is  calculated  at 
sixty  leagues,  and  from  thence  to  the  Mi- 
amis  thirty  leagues.  The  Touraxouslins  and 
Kikapoos  are  fifteen  leagues  in  the  interior, 
from  the  banks  of  the  river ;  two  hundred 
leagues  from  the  junction  of  the  River  Illi- 
nois, and  from  thence  two  hundred  leagues 
to  the  Falls  of  St.  Anthony.  The  rivers  of 
the  Missouri  come  from  the  west,  and,  after 
traversing  three  hundred  leagues,  arrive  at 
a  lake,  which  I  believe  to  he  that  of  the 
Apaches.  The  villages  of  the  Missounta, 
Otenta  and  Osage  are  near  one  another,  and 
are  situated  in  the  prairies,  one  hundred  and 
fifty  leagues  from  the  mouth  of  the  Mis- 
souri. I  should  have  stated  before  that  the 
river  of  the  Illinois  is  two  hundred  leagues 
in  length.  The  Fort  St.  Louis,  with  two 
hundred  cabins,  is  seventy  leagues  from  its 
mouth.  The  little  river  on  which  are  the 
Machigama,  Chipoussa  and  Michibousa  is 
forty  leagues  from  the  Tamazoa.  These 
tribes  are  situated  about  ten  leagues  from  its 
mouth. 

The  mouth  of  the  river  of  the  Kasquin- 
anipo  is  ten  leagues  from  the  mouth  of  the 
Ouabache.  Tlie  village  is  situated  seventy; 
leagues  upwards,  on  the  bank  of  the  river. 


JOURNEYS   OF 

The  Maon,  a  numerous  nation,  and  at  peace 
with  no  one,  is  at  the  source  of  tlie  said 
river,  one  hundred  leagues  from  the  Kas- 
quinanipo.  The  Ozotoues  are  six  leagues 
from  the  mouth  of  the  River  Arkansas.  The 
lonica,  Yazou,  Coroa  and  Chonque  are,  one 
with  the  other,  about  ten  leagues  from  the 
Mississippi,  on  the  river  of  the  Yazou ;  the 
Sioux  fifteen  leagues  above.  All  these 
villages  are  situated  in  prairies,  but 
it  is  remarkable  that  the  country  about, 
the  soil  of  which  is  the  best  in  the  world, 
and  is  intersected  by  streams,  has  been 
abandoned. 

The  Yazou  are  masters  of  the  soil.  The 
Mauton  are  seventy  leagues  from  the  Ossoz- 
toues  and  forty  leagues  from  the  Cadodo- 
quis.  The  Coroa  are  their  neighbors, 
though  thirteen  leagues  off. 

With  respect  to  the  other  nations,  I  have 
sufficiently  described  at  what  distance  they 
are  from  one  another,  from  the  nations  on 
the  Mississippi,  and  from  those  on  the  Red 
River,  excepting  the  Nadouc,  who  are 
twelve  leagues  from  the  banks.  In  case  the 
court  wishes  this  discovery  to  be  continued, 
I  will  add  a  note.  In  that  I  have  stated  it 
will  be  requisite  to  build  a  siiip  of  fifty  tons, 
to  get  to  France  from  the  Arkansas.  Two 
pilots,  &c. ;  particulars  of  everything  neces- 
64 


LA    SALLE 

sary,  and  more  numerous  than  set  forth  in 
M.  de  la  Salle's  Note. 

I  undertake,  with  God's  assistance,  to  de- 
scend the  river,  to  take  solar  observations, 
to  account  for  the  expenses,  and  to  sail  to 
France  with  the  said  vessel  built  in  the  Ar- 
kansas. This  is  the  place  best  adapted  for 
the  purpose,  for  we  should  not  be  inter- 
rupted by  enemies ;  and  wood  and  every- 
thing necessary  for  subsistence  is  there 
abundant. 

Henry  de  Tonty. 

additional  statement  of  what  will  be 
required  for  building  the  vessel. 

The  former  statement  related  to  the  ex- 
penses of  the  voyage,  and  presents  for  the 
savages.  In  case  his  Majesty  grants  the 
above  request,  I  entreat  Monseigneur  de 
Pontchartrain  to  be  kind  enough  to  send 
orders  to  M.  the  Intendant  at  Rochefort  to 
send  the  things  to  Messrs.  the  Count  de 
Frontenac  and  Champigny,  and  the  latter  to 
provide  twenty  large  canoes  and  forty  good 
men  to  manage  them. 

Henry  de  Tonty.. 


65 


JOURNEYS    OF 


CHAPTER  III. 

ACCOUNT  ^  OF  THE  DISCOVERY  OF  THE  RIVER 
MISSISSIPPI  AND  THE  ADJACENT  COUN- 
TRY BY   FATHER  LOUIS   HENNEPIN. 

Finding  in  myself  a  strong  inclination  to 
retire  from  the  world,  I  entered  into  the 
Franciscan  order,  where  I  was  overjoyed  in 
reading  the  travels  of  the  fathers  of  my 
own  order,  who  were,  indeed,  the  first  that 
undertook  missions  into  any  foreign  coun- 
try. I  thought  nothing  greater  or  more 
glorious  than  to  instruct  the  ignorant  and 
barbarous  and  lead  them  to  the  light  of  the 
gospel.  In  order  to  [do]  which  I  went  [as] 
missionary  for  Canada,  by  command  of  my 
superiors,  and  embarked  at  Rochelle,  in 
company  of  M.  de  Laval,  since  Bishop  of 
Quebec,  the  capital  city  of  Canada.  Our 
crew  was  about  one  hundred  men,  to  three- 
fourths  of  whom  I  administered  the  sacra- 
ment, they  being  Catholics.  I  likewise  per- 
formed divine  service  every  day  when  the 
weather  was  calm,  and  we  sung  the  Itin- 

^  This  Account  seems  to  be  an  abridged  version 
of  the  New  Discovery.     Cf.  Thwaites'  edition  of 
the  latter.    Vol.  II.,  App.  II.  A.,  lo. 
66 


LA    SALLE 

erary  of  the  clergy,  translated  into  French 
verse,  after  evening  prayers. 

I  shall  omit  the  accidents  that  befell  us, 
being  such  only  as  are  inseparable  com- 
panions of  all  great  voyages.  Soon  after 
my  arrival  I  was  sent  in  mission  about  one 
hundred  and  twenty  leagues  beyond  Que- 
bec, accompanied  by  Father  Luke  Buisset. 
We  went  up  the  River  St.  Lawrence  south- 
wards till  we  came  to  Fort  Frontenac,  dis- 
tant from  Quebec  one  hundred  leagues.  It 
was  built  to  prevent  the  excursions  of  the 
Iroquois,  and  to  interrupt  the  trade  of  skins 
these  savages  maintain  with  the  inhabitants 
of  New  York,  who  furnish  them  with  com- 
modities at  cheaper  rates  than  the  French 
of  Canada. 

The  Iroquois  are  an  insolent  and  bar- 
barous nation,  and  have  shed  the  blood  of 
more  than  two  millions  of  people  in  that 
vast  extended  country.  They  would  never 
cease  from  disturbing  the  repose  of  the  Eu- 
ropeans, were  it  not  for  fear  of  their  fire- 
arms ;  for  they  entertain  no  commerce  with 
them,  unless  it  be  for  arms,  which  they  buy 
on  purpose  to  use  against  their  neighbors, 
and  by  means  of  which  they  have  extended 
their  bloody  conquests  five  or  six  hundred 
leagues  beyond  their  own  precincts,  exter- 
minating whatever  nation  they  hate. 

^7 


JOURNEYS    OF 

I  had  already  acquired  some  small  knowl- 
edge of  the  Iroquois  language,  and  Father 
Luke  and  I  translated  the  Creed,  Lord's 
Prayer  and  Litany,  which  we  caused  them 
to  get  by  heart  and  repeat  to  their  children. 
They  pronounce  no  labial  letters,  such 
as  B,  P,  M,  F.  Here  we  remained 
two  years  and  a  half,  till  we  saw 
our  house  of  mission  finished,  and  then  re- 
turned in  a  canoe  down  the  River  St.  Law- 
rence to  Quebec. 

Having  tarried  there  till  those  who  were 
expected  from  Europe  to  bear  part  in  this 
discovery  were  arrived,  I  embarked  in  a 
small  canoe,  made  of  the  bark  of  birch  trees, 
carrying  nothing  with  me  but  a  portable 
chapel,  one  blanket  and  a  mat  of  rushes, 
which  was  to  serve  me  for  bed  and  quilt. 
I  arrived  at  Fort  Frontenac  the  2d  of  No- 
vember, 1678,^  and  on  the  i8th  embarked 
in  a  brigatine  of  about  ten  tons  and  fifteen 
men,  the  Sieur  de  la  Motte,  commander.  We 
sailed  on  till  we  came  to  the  further  end 
of  the  Lake  Ontario,  and  on  the  6th  of  Jan- 
uary entered  the  River  Niagara,  where  we 
set  our  carpenters  and  the  rest  of  the  crew 
to  work  in  building  a  fort  and  some  houses ; 

["  From  this  point  Hennepin's  narrative  should 
be  compared  with  those  of  Tonty  (Vol.  i.,  Ch.  i) 
and  Le  Clercq  (I.,  Chap.  iv.  and  v.),  and  with 
Margry.] 

68 


LA    SALLE 

but,  foreseeing  that  this  was  like  to  give 
jealousy  to  the  Iroquois,  and  to  the  Eng- 
lish who  dwell  near  them,  and  have  a  great 
commerce  with  them,  we  to'ld  those  of  the 
village  of  Niagara  that  we  did  not  intend 
to  build  a  fort  on  the  bank  of  their  river, 
but  only  a  great  storehouse  to  keep  the 
commodities  we  had  brought  to  supply  their 
occasions.  And,  to  remove  their  suspicions, 
M.  de  la  Motte  thought  it  absolutely  neces- 
sary to  send  an  embassy  to  the  Iroquois, 
telling  me  "he  was  resolved  to  take  along 
with  him  seven  men  out  of  sixteen  that  we 
were  in  all,  and  desired  me  to  accompany 
him,  because  I  understood  in  a  manner  the 
language  of  their  nation."  We  passed 
through  forests  thirty-two  leagues,  and 
after  five  days'  journey  came  to  a  great  vil- 
lage, and  were  imimediately  carried  to  the 
cabin  of  their  principal.  The  younger  sav- 
ages washed  our  feet  and  rubbed  them  over 
with  the  grease  of  deer,  wild  goats  and  oil 
of  bears.  They  are  for  the  most  part  tall 
and  well  shaped,  covered  with  a  sort  of 
robe  made  of  beavers'  and  wolves'  skins,  or 
black  squirrels,  holding  a  pipe  or  calumet 
in  their  hands.  The  Senators  of  Venice  do 
not  appear  with  a  graver  countenance,  and 
perhaps  do  not  speak  with  more  majesty  and 
soliditv  than  those  ancient  Iroquois. 
69 


JOURNEYS    OF 

One  of  our  men,  who  well  understood 
their  language,  told  the  assembly : 

1.  That  we  were  come  to  pay  them  a  visit 
and  smoke  with  them  in  their  pipes.  Then 
we  delivered  our  presents,  consisting  of 
axes,  knives,  a  great  collar  of  white  and 
blue  porcelain,  with  some  gowns.  The  same 
presents  were  renewed  upon  every  point  we 
proposed  to  them. 

2.  We  desired  them  to  give  notice  to  the 
five  cantons  of  their  nation  that  we  were 
about  to  build  a  ship  or  great  canoe  above 
the  great  fall  of  the  River  Niagara,  to  go 
and  fetch  European  commodities  by  a  more 
convenient  passage  than  that  of  the  River 
St.  Lawrence,  whose  rapid  currents  make  it 
dangerous  and  long;  and  that  by  these 
means  we  should  afiford  them  our  commodi- 
ties cheaper  than  the  English  of  Boston,  or 
the  Dutch,  at  that  time  masters  of  New 
York.  This  pretense  was  specious  enough 
and  very  well  contrived  to  engage  the  bar- 
barous nation  to  extirpate  the  English  and 
Dutch  out  of  that  part  of  America. 

3.  We  told  them  we  should  provide  them, 
at  the  River  Niagara,  with  a  blacksmith  and 
gunsmith  to  mend  their  guns,  axes,  &c., 
they  having  nobody  among  them  that  un- 
derstood that  trade.  We  added  many  other 
reasons  which   we  thought  proper  to  per- 

70 


LA    SALLE 

suade  them  to  favor  our  design.  The  pres- 
ents we  made  unto  them  in  cloth  or  iron 
were  worth  above  four  hundred  livres,  be- 
sides some  other  European  commodities, 
very  scarce  in  that  country ;  for  the  best 
reasons  in  the  world  are  not  listened  to 
among  them  unless  they  are  enforced  with 
presents. 

The  next  day  their  speaker  answered  our 
discourse  article  by  article,  seeming  to  be 
pleased  with  our  proposals,  though  they 
were  not  really  so,  having  a  greater  inclina- 
tion for  the  English  and  Dutch  than  for  us. 
Whilst  we  were  with  them  their  parties  had 
made  an  excursion  towards  Virginia  and 
brought  two  prisoners.  They  spared  the 
life  of  one,  but  put  to  death  the  other,  with 
most  exquisite  torments.  They  commonly 
use  this  inhumanity  towards  all  their  pris- 
oners, and  their  torments  sometimes  last  a 
month.  When  they  have  brought  them  into 
their  canton  they  lay  them  on  pieces  of 
wood  like  a  St.  Andrew's  cross,  to  which 
they  tie  their  legs  and  arms,  and  expose 
them  to  gnats  and  flies,  who  sting  them  to 
death.  Children  cut  pieces  of  flesh  out  of 
their  flanks,  thighs  or  other  parts  and,  boil- 
ing them,  force  those  poor  souls  to  eat  there- 
of. Their  parents  eat  some  themselves  and, 
the  better  to  inspire  into  their  children  a 

71 


JOURNEYS    OF 

hatred  of  their  enemies,  give  them  some  of 
their  blood  to  drink.  This  cruehy  obhged 
us  to  leave  them  sooner  than  we  would  have 
done,  to  show  them  the  horror  we  had  of 
their  inhumanity,  and  never  ate  with  them 
afterwards ;  but  returned  the  same  way  we 
went,  through  the  woods  to  the  River  Niag- 
ara, where  we  arrived  the  14th  of  January, 
much  fatigued  with  our  voyage,  having  no 
food  on  the  way  but  Indian  corn.  M.  de  la 
Motte,  no  longer  able  to  endure  so  labor- 
ious a  life,  gave  over  his  design  and  re- 
turned to  Canada,  having  about  two  hun- 
dred leagues  to  travel. 

On  the  20th  M.  de  la  Salle  arrived  from 
Fort  Frontenac  with  a  great  bark  to  sup- 
ply us  with  provisions,  rigging  and  tackling 
for  the  ship  we  designed  to  build  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Lake  Erie ;  but  that  bark  was 
unfortunately  cast  away  on  the  Lake  On- 
tario, within  two  leagues  of  Niagara.  On 
the  22d  we  went  two  leagues  above  the 
great  fall  of  Niagara,  where  we  made  a 
dock  for  building  the  ship.  M.  de  la  Salle 
returned  to  Fort  Frontenac,  leaving  one 
Tonti,  an  Italian,  for  our  commander.  He 
undertook  this  journey  afoot,  over  the  snow, 
having  no  other  provision  but  a  little  sack 
of  roasted  Indian  corn.  However,  he  got 
home  safely  with  two  men  and  a  dog,  who 
72 


LA    SALLE 

dragged  his  baggage  over  the  frozen  snow. 

Most  of  the  Iroquois  were  now  gone  to 
wage  war  on  the  other  side  of  the  Lake  Erie, 
and  our  men  continued,  with  great  appHca- 
tion,  to  build  our  ship ;  for  the  Iroquois  who 
were  left  behind  were  not  so  insolent  as  be- 
fore, though  they  came  sometimes  to  our 
dock,  and  expressed  some  discontent  at 
what  we  were  doing. 

We  made  all  the  haste  we  could  to  get 
our  ship  afloat,  though  not  altogether  fin- 
ished, to  prevent  their  designs  of  burning  it. 
She  was  called  the  Griffin,  about  sixty  tons, 
and  carried  five  small  guns.  We  fired  three 
guns  and  sung  Te  Deum;  and,  carrying  our 
hammocks  aboard,  the  same  day  were  out 
of  the  reach  of  the  savages. 

Before  we  could  proceed  in  our  intended 
discovery  I  was  obliged  to  return  to  Fort 
Frontenac  to  bring  along  with  me  two 
monks  of  my  own  order  to  help  me  in  the 
function  of  my  ministry.  I  concealed  part 
of  the  discouragements  I  had  met  with,  be- 
cause I  designed  to  engage  Father  Gabriel 
and  Zenobe  in  our  voyage.  Having  dis- 
patched our  affairs,  we  three  went  aboard  a 
brigantine,  and  in  a  short  time  arrived  at 
the  river  which  runs  into  the  Lake  Ontario, 
where  we  continued  several  days,  our  men 
being  very  busy  in  bartering  their  commodi- 

73 


JOURNEYS    OF 

ties  with  the  natives,  who  exchanged  their 
skins  for  knives,  guns,  powder  and  shot,  but 
especially  brandy,  which  they  love  above  all 
things.  M.  de  la  Salle  arrived  in  a  canoe 
eight  days  after.  These  impediments  re- 
tarded us  so  long  that  we  could  not  reach 
the  River  Niagara  before  the  30th  of  July. 
Father  Gabriel  and  I  went  overland  to  view 
the  great  fall,  the  like  whereof  is  not  in  the 
whole  world.  It  is  compounded  of  two 
great  cross  streams  of  water  and  two  falls, 
with  an  isle  sloping  along  the  middle  of  it. 
The  waters  which  fall  from  this  vast  height 
do  foam  and  boil  after  the  most  hideous 
manner  imaginable,  making  an  outrageous 
noise,  more  terrible  than  that  of  thunder ; 
so  that  when  the  wind  blows  from  the  south 
their  dismal  roaring  may  be  heard  above 
fifteen  leagues  off. 

The  River  Niagara  having  thrown  itself 
down  this  incredible  precipice,  continues  its 
impetuous  course  for  two  leagues  with  an 
inexpressible  rapidity ;  and  the  banks  are  so 
prodigious  high  that  it  makes  one  tremble 
to  look  steadily  on  the  water,  rolling  along 
with  a  rapidity  not  to  be  imagined.  It  is  so 
rapid  above  the  descent  that  it  violently  hur- 
ries do'Wn  the  wild  beasts  endeavoring  to 
pass  to  feed  on  the  other  side,  casting  them 
down  headlong  above  six  hundred  feet.  A 
74 


LA    SALLE 

bark  or  greater  vessel  may  pass  from  Fort 
Frontenac  until  you  come  within  two 
leagues  of  the  fall,  for  which  two  leagues 
the  people  are  obliged  to  carry  their  goods 
overland ;  but  the  way  is  very  good,  and  the 
trees  are  but  few,  and  they  chiefly  firs  and 
oaks.  Were  it  not  for  this  vast  cataract, 
which  interrupts  navigation,  we  might  sail 
with  barks  or  greater  vessels  above  four 
hundred  and  fifty  leagues  further. 

On  the  7th  of  August  we  went  on  board, 
being  in  all  thirty-four  men,  and  sailed  from 
the  mouth  of  the  Lake  Erie,  and  on  the  i  ith 
entered  a  strait  thirty  leagues  long  and  one 
broad,  except  in  the  middle,  which  makes 
the  lake  of  St.  Clair.  On  the  23d  we  got 
into  the  Lake  Huron.  The  26th  we  had  so 
violent  a  storm  that  we  brought  down  our 
yards  and  topmasts  and  let  the  ship  drive 
at  the  mercy  of  the  wind,  knowing  no  place 
to  run  into  to  shelter  ourselves.  M.  de  la 
Salle,  notwithstanding  he  was  a  courageous 
man,  began  to  fear,  and  told  us  we  were 
undone ;  whereupon  everybody  fell  on  his 
knees  to  say  his  prayers  and  prepare  him- 
self for  death,  except  our  pilot,  whom  we 
could  never  oblige  to  pray ;  and  he  did  noth- 
ing all  that  while  but  curse  and  swear 
against  M.  de  la  Salle,  who  had  brought 
him  thither  to  make  him  perish  in  a  nasty; 

75 


JOURNEYS    OF 

lake  and  lose  the  glory  he  had  acquired  by 
his  long  and  happy  navigations  on  the 
ocean.  When  the  wind  abated  we  hoisted 
our  sail,  and  the  next  day  arrived  at  Missili- 
makinak. 

On  the  2d  of  September  we  weighed  an- 
chor and  sailed  to  an  island  at  the  mouth 
of  the  Bay  of  Puans  [Green  Bay],  forty 
leagues  from  Missilmakinak.  The  chief 
among  them,  who  had  been  formerly  in  Can- 
ada, received  us  with  all  the  civility  imagin- 
able. M.  de  la  Salle,  without  asking  any 
other  body's  advice,  resolved  to  send  back 
the  ship  to  Niagara,  laden  with  furs  and 
skins,  to  discharge  his  debts.  Our  pilot,  and 
five  men  with  him,  were  therefore  sent  back, 
and  ordered  to  return  with  all  imaginable 
speed  to  join  us  towards  the  southern  parts 
of  the  lal<e,  where  we  should  stay  for  them 
among  the  Illinois.  They  sailed  the  i8th, 
W'ith  a  westerly  wind,  and  fired  a  gun  as  tak- 
ing leave.  It  was  never  known  what  course 
they  steered,  nor  how  they  perished ;  but  it 
is  supposed  that  the  ship  struck  upon  a 
sand  and  was  there  buried.  This  was  a 
great  loss  for  M.  de  la  Salle  and  other  ad- 
venturers, for  that  ship  with  its  cargo  cost 
above  sixty  thousand  livres. 

We  continued  our  voyage  in  four  canoes, 
being  fourteen  men  in  all,  and  departed  the 
76 


LA    SALLE 

19th  of  September.  We  steered  to  the  south 
towards  the  continent,  distant  from  the  isl- 
and near  forty  leagues.  On  the  ist  of  Oc- 
tober, after  twelve  leagues'  rowing,  we  were 
in  so  great  danger  by  stress  of  weather  that 
we  were  forced  to  throw  ourselves  into  the 
water  and  carry  our  canoes  on  our  shoul- 
ders to  save  them  from  being  broken  to 
pieces.  I  carried  Father  Gabriel  on  my 
back,  whose  great  age,  being  sixty-five 
years,  did  not  permit  him  to  venture  into 
the  water. 

Having  no  acquaintance  with  the  savages 
of  the  village  near  which  we  landed,  we  pre- 
pared to  make  a  vigorous  defense  in  case  of 
an  attack,  and,  in  order  to  do  it,  possessed 
ourselves  of  a  rising  ground  where  we  could 
not  be  surprised.  We  then  sent  three  men 
to  buy  provisions  in  the  village,  with  the 
calumet  or  pipe  of  peace  which  those  of  the 
island  had  given  us.  And,  because  the  calu- 
ment  of  peace  is  the  most  sacred  thing 
among  the  savages,  I  shall  here  describe  the 
same. 

It  is  a  large  tobacco  pipe,  of  a  red,  black 
or  white  marble.  The  head  is  finely  pol- 
ished. The  quill,  which  is  commonly  two 
feet  and  a  half  long,  is  made  of  a  pretty 
strong  reed  or  cane,  adorned  with  feathers 
of    all    colors,    interlaced    with    locks    of 

17 


JOURNEYS    OF 

women's  hair.  Every  nation  adorns  it  as 
they  think  fit,  and  according  to  the  birds 
they  have  in  their  country. 

Such  a  pipe  is  a  safe  conduct  amongst  all 
the  allies  of  the  nation  who  has  given  it ; 
and  in  all  embassies  the  calumet  is  carried 
as  a  symbol  of  peace,  the  savages  being 
generally  persuaded  that  some  great  mis- 
fortune would  befall  them  if  they  should 
violate  the  public  faith  of  the  calumet.  They 
fill  this  pipe  with  the  best  tobacco  they  have 
and  then  present  it  to  those  with  whom 
they  have  concluded  any  great  affair  and 
smoke  out  of  the  same  after  them. 

Our  three  men,  provided  with  this  pipe 
and  very  well  armed,  went  to  the  little  vil- 
lage three  leagues  from,  the  place  where 
we  landed  ;  but,  finding  nobody  therein,  took 
some  Indian  corn,  and  left  instead  of  it 
some  goods,  to  let  them  see  that  we  were 
no  robbers  nor  their  enemies.  However, 
twenty  of  them,  armed  with  axes,  small 
guns,  bows  and  clubs,  advanced  near  the 
place  where  we  stoo'd ;  whereupon  M.  de  la 
Salle,  with  four  men,  very  well  armed,  went 
toward  them  to  speak  with  tliem,  and  de- 
sired them  to  come  near  us,  for  fear  a  party 
of  our  men  who  were  gone  a-hunting  should 
meet  with  them  and  kill  them.  They  sat 
down  at  the  foot  of  the  eminence  where  we 
78 


LA   SALLE 

were  posted,  and  M.  de  la  Salle  spoke  to 
them  all  the  while  concerning  his  voyage, 
which  he  told  them  he  had  undertaken  for 
their  good  and  advantage.  This  was  only 
to  amuse  them  till  our  three  men  returned, 
who,  appearing  with  the  calumet  of  peace, 
the  savages  made  a  great  shout  and  rose 
and'  began  to  dance.  We  excused  our  taking 
some  of  their  corn,  telling  them  that  we  had 
left  the  true  value  of  it  in  goods,  which  they 
took  so  well  that  they  sent  immediately  for 
more,  and  gave  us  next  day  as  much  as  we 
could  carry  away  in  our  canoes.  They  re- 
tired towards  evening,  and  M.  de  la  Salle 
ordered  some  trees  to  be  cut  down  and  laid 
across  the  way,  to  prevent  any  surprise  from 
them.  The  oldest  of  them  came  to  us  next 
morning  with  their  calumet  of  peace  and 
brought  us  some  wild  goats.  We  presented 
them  with  some  axes,  knives  and  several 
little  toys  for  their  wives,  with  which  they 
were  well  pleased. 

We  left  that  place  the  2d  of  October  and 
coasted  along  the  lake,  which  is  so  steep 
that  we  could  hardly  find  any  place  to  land. 
The  violence  of  the  wind  obliged  us  to  drag 
our  canoes  sometimes  to  the  top  of  the  rocks 
to  prevent  their  being  dashed  in  pieces.  The 
stormy  weather  lasted  four  days,  during 
which  we  suffered  very  much,  and  our  pro- 
79 


JOURNEYS    OF 

visions  failed  us  again ;  which,  with  the  fa- 
tigues of  rowing,  caused  old  Father  Ga- 
briel to  faint  away  in  such  a  manner  that 
I  thought  verily  he  could  not  live.  We  had 
no  other  subsistence  but  a  handful  of  In- 
dian corn  once  every  twenty-four  hours, 
which  we  roasted  or  else  boiled  in  water, 
and  yet  rowed  almost  every  day  from  morn- 
ing till  night.  Being  in  this  dismal  distress, 
we  saw  upon  the  coast  a  great  many  ravens 
and  eagles,  from  whence  we  conjectured 
there  was  some  prey ;  and,  having  landed 
upon  that  place,  we  found  above  the  half  of 
a  fat  wild  goat  which  the  wolves  had  stran- 
gled. This  provision  was  very  acceptable 
to  us,  and  the  rudest  of  our  men  could  not 
but  praise  the  divine  Providence  who  took 
so  particular  a  care  of  us. 

Having  thus  refreshed  ourselves,  we  con- 
tinued our  voyage  directly  to  the  southern 
parts  of  the  lake.  On  the  i6th  we  met  with 
abundance  of  game.  A  savage  we  had 
with  us  killed  several  stags  and  wild  goats, 
and  our  men  a  great  many  turkeys,  very 
fat  and  big:  wherewith  we  provided  our- 
selves for  several  days,  and  so  embarked 
again.  On  the  1st  of  November  we  came 
to  the  mouth  of  the  river  of  the  Miami s 
[St.  Joseph],  which  runs  from  the  south 
and  falls  into  the  lake.  Here  we  spent  all 
80 


LA    SALLE 

that  month  in  building  a  fort  forty  feet  long 
and  eighty  broad,  made  with  great  square 
pieces  of  timber  laid  one  upon  the  other. 

On  the  3d  of  December  we  embarked, 
being  thirty-three  men,  in  eight  canoes, 
and,  having  rowed  about  twenty-five 
leagues  up  the  River  Miamis  to  the  south- 
west, we  could  not  find  the  place  where  we 
were  to  land  and  carry  our  canoes  and 
equipage  into  the  river  of  the  Illinois,  which 
falls  into  Mississippi.  Our  savage,  who 
was  hunting  ashore,  not  finding  us  at  the 
place  of  portage,  came  higher  up  the  river 
and  told  us  we  had  missed  it.  So  we  re- 
turned and  carried  our  canoes  overland  to 
tlie  head  of  the  Illinois  River,  which  is  but 
a  league  and  a  half  from  that  of  Miamis. 
We  continued  our  course  upon  this  river 
very  near  the  whole  month  of  December,  to- 
wards the  end  of  which  we  arrived  at  the 
village  of  the  Illinois,  about  one  hundred 
and  thirty  leagues  from  Fort  Miamis.  We 
found  nobody  in  the  village,  which  caused 
a  great  perplexity  among  us,  for,  though  we 
wanted  provisions,  yet  we  durst  not  meddle 
with  the  corn  which  they  had  laid  under- 
ground for  their  subsistence  and  tO'  sow 
their  lands  with,  it  being  the  most  sensible 
wrong  one  can  do  them,,  in  their  opinion,  to 
take  some  of  their  corn  in  their  absence. 
81 


JOURNEYS   OF 

However,  our  necessity  being  very  great, 
and  it  being  impossible  to  continue  our  voy- 
age without  it,  M,  de  la  Salle  took  about 
forty  bushels  of  it,  hoping  to  appease  them 
with  some  presents. 

We  embarked  again  with  this  fresh  pro- 
vision and  fell  down  the  river  the  first  of 
January,  1680.  We  took  the  elevation  of 
the  pole,  which  was  33°  45'.  Although  we 
used  all  the  precaution  we  could,  we  found 
ourselves  on  a  sudden  in  the  middle  of  their 
camp,  which  took  up  both  sides  of  the  river. 
The  Illinois,  being  much  terrified,  though 
they  were  several  thousand  men,  tendered 
us  the  calumet  of  peace,  and  we  offered 
them  ours.  M.  de  la  Salle  presented  them 
with  Martinico  tobacco  and  some  axes.  He 
told  them,  "he  knew  how  necessary  their 
corn  was  to  them,  but  that,  being  reduced 
too  an  unspeakable  necessity  when  he  came 
to  their  village,  and  seeing  no  probability 
to  subsist,  he  had  been  forced  to  take  some 
corn  from  their  habitations  without  their 
leave.  That  he  would  give  them  axes  and 
other  things  in  lieu  of  it,  if  they  could  spare 
it ;  and  if  ihcy  could  not,  they  were  free  to 
take  it  again."  The  savages  considered  our 
proposals,  granted  our  demands  and  made 
an  alliance  with  us. 

Some  days  after  Nikanapc,  brother  to  the 
82 


LA    SALLE 

most  considerable  man  among  them,  who 
was  then  absent,  invited  ns  to  a  great  feast, 
and  before  we  sat  down  told  us,  "that  he 
had  invited  us  not  so  much  to  give  us  a 
treat  as  to  endeavor  to  dissuade  us  from 
the  resolution  we  had  taken  to  go  down  to 
the  sea  by  the  great  River  Mississippi."  He 
said,  "that  the  banks  of  that  river  were  in- 
habited by  barbarous  and  bloody  nations, 
and  that  several  had  perished  upon  the  same 
enterprise."  Our  interpreter  told  him,  by 
order  of  M.  de  la  Salle,  "that  we  were  much 
obliged  to  him  for  his  advice,  but  the  diffi- 
culties and  dangers  he  had  mentioned  would 
make  our  enterprise  still  more  glorious. 
That  we  feared  the  Master  of  the  life  of 
all  men,  who  ruled  the  sea  and  all  the  world, 
and  therefore  would  think  it  happiness  to 
lay  down  our  lives  to  make  His  name  known 
to  all  His  creatures."  However,  Nikanape's 
discourse  had  put  some  of  our  men  under 
such  terrible  apprehensions  that  we  could 
never  recover  their  courage  nor  remove 
their  fears ;  so  that  six  of  them  who  had 
the  guard  that  night  (among  which  were 
two  sawyers,  the  most  necessary  of  our 
workmen  for  building  our  ship)  ran  away, 
taking  with  them  what  they  thought  neces- 
sary. But,  considering  the  country  through 
which  they  were  to  travel  and  the  season 
83 


JOURNEYS    OF 

of  the  year,  we  may  say  that,  in  avoiding  an 
uncertainty,  they  exposed  themselves  to  a 
m.ost  c'ertain  danger. 

M.  de  la  Salle,  seeing  those  six  men  were 
gone,  exhorted  the  rest  to  continue  firm  in 
their  duty,  assuring  them  that  if  any  were 
afraid  of  venturing  themselves  upon  the 
river  of  Mississippi  because  of  the  dangers 
Nikanape  had  mentioned,  he  would  give 
them  leave  to  return  next  spring  to  Canada, 
and  allow  them  a  canoe  to  make  their  voy- 
age ;  whereas  they  could  not  venture  to  re- 
turn home  at  this  time  of  the  year  without 
exposing  themselves  to  perish  with  hunger, 
cold,  or  the  hands  of  the  savages. 

On  the  15th  we  made  choice  of  an  emi- 
nence on  the  bank  of  the  river,  defended  on 
that  side  by  the  river  and  on  two  others  by 
two  deep  ditches  made  by  the  rains,  so  that 
it  was  accessible  only  by  one  way.  We  cast 
a  line  to  join  those  two  natural  ditches,  and 
made  the  eminence  steep  on  every  side,  supn 
porting  the  earth  with  great  pieces  of  tim- 
ber. By  the  first  of  March  our  fort  was 
near  finished,  and  we  named  it  Crevecoeur, 
because  the  desertion  of  our  men,  with  the 
difficulties  we  labored  under,  had  almost 
broken  our  hearts.^  We  also  built  a  bark 
for  the   continuance  of  our  discovery.     It 

V  Cf.  Vol.  I.,  page  104.] 
84 


LA    SALLE 

■was  forty-two  feet  long  by  the  keel,  and 
was  in  such  forwardness  that  we  should 
have  been  in  a  condition  to  sail  in  a  very 
short  time  had  we  been  provided  with  all 
other  necessaries.  But,  hearing-  nothing  of 
our  ship  Griffin,  and  therefore  wanting  the 
rigging  and  other  tackle  we  expected  by 
her,  we  found  ourselves  in  great  perplexity, 
and  did  not  know  what  to  do  in  this  sad 
juncture,  being  above  five  hundred  leagues 
from  Fort  Frontenac,  whither  it  was  almost 
impossible  to  return  at  that  time,  because 
the  snow  made  traveling  very  dangerous  by 
land,  and  the  ice  made  it  impracticable  to 
our  canoes. 

M.  de  la  Salle  did  now  no  longer  doubt 
but  his  beloved  Griffin  was  lost,  but  neither 
this  nor  the  other  difficulties  dejected  him. 
His  great  courage  buoyed  him  up,  and  he 
resolved  with  three  men  to  return  to  Fort 
Frontenac  by  land,  notwithstanding  the 
snow  and  the  unspeakable  dangers  attend- 
ing so  great  a  journey,  and  to  bring  along 
with  him  the  necessary  things  to  proceed 
on  our  discovery;  while  I  with  two  men 
should  go  in  a  canoe  to  the  River  Missis- 
sippi to  get  the  friendship  of  the  nations  in- 
habiting the  banks  thereof.  Then,  calling 
his  men  together,  told  them,  "He  would 
leave  M.  Tonti  to  command  in  the  fort, 
85 


JOURNEYS    OF 

and  desired  them  to  obey  his  orders  in  his 
absence ;  to  Hve  in  a  Christian  union  and 
charity ;  to  be  courageous  and  firm  in  their 
design."  He  assured  them,  "He  would  re- 
turn with  all  the  speed  imaginable  and  bring 
with  him  a  fresh  supply  of  meat,  ammuni- 
tion and  rigging  for  our  bark ;  and  that  in 
the  meantime  he  left  them  arms  and  other 
things  necessary  for  a  vigorous  defense  in 
case  their  enemies  should  attack  them  be- 
fore his  return." 

Then  telling  me,  "Tliat  he  expected  that 
I  should  depart  without  further  delay,"  he 
embraced  me  and  gave  me  a  calumet  of 
peace,  with  two  men  to  manage  our  canoe, 
Picard  and  Ako,  to  whom  he  gave  some 
commodities  to  the  value  of  about  one  thou- 
sand livrcs  to  trade  with  the  savages  or 
make  presents.  He  gave  to  me  in  particu- 
lar, and  for  my  own  use,  ten  knives,  twelve 
shoemakers'  awls  or  bodkins,  a  small  roll  of 
Martinico  tobacco,  two  pounds  of  rassade, 
i.  e.,  little  pearls  or  rings  of  colored  glass,  to 
make  bracelets  for  the  savages,  and  a  small 
parcel  of  needles ;  telling  me,  "He  would 
have  given  me  a  greater  quantity  if  it  had 
been  in  his  power." 

Thus  relying  on  the  providence  of  God, 
and  receiving  the  blessing  of  Father  Ga- 
briel, I  embraced  all  our  men  and  took  my 
86 


LA   SALLE 

leave  of  M.  de  la  Salle,  who  set  out  a  few 
days  after  for  Canada  with  three  men,  with- 
out any  provisions  but  what  they  killed  in 
their  journey,  during  which  they  suffered 
very  much  by  cold  weather,  snow,  and  hun- 
ger. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

NARRATIVE  OF  THE  FIRST  ATTEMPT  BY  M. 
CAVELIER  DE  LA  SALLE  TO  EXPLORE  THE 
MISSISSIPPI.  DRAWN  UP  FROM  THE 
MANUSCRIPTS  OF  FATHER  ZENOBIUS 
MEMBRE,  A  RECOLLECT,  BY  FATHER 
CHRETIEN   LECLERCQ. 

The  Sieur  Robert  Cavelier  de  la  Salle,  a 
r.ative  of  Rouen,  of  one  of  the  most  distin- 
guished families  there,  a  man  of  vast  intel- 
lect, brought  up  for  literar}'  pursuits,  capa- 
ble and  learned  in  every  branch,  especially 
in  mathematics,  naturally  enterprising,  pru- 
dent and  moral,  had  been  for  some  years  in 
Canada,  and  had  already,  under  the  admin- 
istration of  De  Courcelles  and  Talon, 
shown  his  great  ability  for  discoveries.  M. 
de  Frontenac  selected  him  to  command  Fort 
Frontenac,  where  he  was  nearly  a  year,  till, 
coming  to  France  in  1675,  he  obtained  of 
87 


JOURNEYS   OF 

the  court  the  government  and  property  of 
the  lake  and  its  dependencies  on  condition 
of  building  there  a  regular  stone  fort,  clear- 
ing the  ground,  and  making  French  and 
Indian  villages,  and  of  supporting  there,  at 
his  own  expense,  a  sufficient  garrison  and 
Recollect  missionaries. 

Monsieur  de  la  Salle  returned  to  Canada 
and  fulfilled  these  conditions  completely ;  a 
fort  with  four  bastions  was  built  at  the  en- 
trance of  the  lake  on  the  northern  side  at  the 
end  of  a  basin,  where  a  considerable  fleet 
of  large  vessels  might  be  sheltered  from  the 
winds.  This  fort  enclosed  that  built  by 
Monsieur  de  Frontenac.  He  also  gave  us 
a  piece  of  ground  fifteen  arpents  in  front 
by  twenty  deep,  the  donation  being  accepted 
by  Monsieur  de  Frontenac,  syndic  of  our 
mission. 

It  would  be  difficult  to  detail  the  obstacles 
he  had  to  encounter,  raised  against  him 
daily  in  the  execution  of  his  plans,  so  that 
he  found  less  opposition  in  the  savage  tribes 
whom  he  was  always  able  to  bring  into  his 
plans.  Monsieur  de  Frontenac  went  up  there 
every  year,  and  care  was  taken  to  assemble 
there  the  chiefs  and  leading  men  of  the 
Iroquois  nations,  great  and  small ;  maintain- 
ing by  this  means  alliance  and  commerce 
with  them,  and  disposing  them  to  embrace 
88 


LA    SALLE 

Christianity,  which  was  the  principal  ob- 
ject of  the  next  establishment.^ 

My  design  being  to  treat  of  the  publica- 
tion of  the  faith  of  that  prodigious  quantity 
of  nations  who  are  comprised  in  the  domin- 
ions of  the  king,  as  his  majesty  has  discov- 
ered them,  we  shall  continue  our  subject  by 
those  which  were  made  during  the  rest  of 
the  present  epoch  in  all  parts  of  New 
France. 

While  the  reverend  father  Jesuits  among 
the  southern  Iroquois  on  the  upper  part  of 
the  river  had  the  honor  of  bearing  the  gos- 
pel to  the  nations  bordering  on  those  tribes ; 
the  peace  between  the  two  crowns  of  France 
and  England  giving  them  free  access  every- 
where, without  being  traversed  by  the  Eng- 
lish, they  announced  the  faith  to  the  Etche- 
mins  and  other  Indian  nations  that  came  to 
trade  at  Loup  River,  where  the  ordinary 

^Le  Qercq,  p.  119.  The  subsequent  pages,  down 
to  page  131,  relate  to  the  religious  affairs  of  the 
colony.  The  only  reference  to  La  Salle  is  this,  on 
p.  127 :  "Our  reverend  fathers  having  obtained  of 
the  King  letters-patent  for  our  establishments  at 
Quebec,  Isle  Percee,  and  Fort  Frontenac,  they 
were  registered  at  the  sovereign  council  of  Que- 
bec, and  Monsieur  de  la  Salle  built,  at  his  own 
expense,  a  house  on  the  land  he  had  given  us 
near  the  fort,  in  which  a  chapel  was  made.  A 
fine  church  was  afterward  added,  adorned  with 
paintings  and  necessary  vestments — also,  a  regular 
house  and  appendages,  completed  by  the  exertions 
of  Father  Joseph  Denis." 
89 


JOURNEYS    OF 

post  of  the  mission  was ;  our  missions  of 
St.  John's  River,  Beaubassin,  ]\Iizamichis, 
Nipisiguit,  Ristigoiiche  and  Isle  Percee 
were  similarly  supported — we  continued  to 
labor  for  the  conversion  of  the  Indians  of 
those  vast  countries  comprised  under  the 
name  of  Acadia,  Cape  Breton  and  the  great 
bay  (Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence). 

In  the  time  of  M.  de  Courcelles  and  Talon 
the  discoveries  were  pushed  toward  the 
north  bay  (Hudson's),  of  which  something 
was  known  from  two  or  three  previous  at- 
tempts. The  Sieur  de  St.  Simon  was  chosen 
for  the  expedition,  with  the  Reverend  Fa- 
ther Albanes  (Albanel),  a  Jesuit.  By  the 
maps  of  the  country  it  is  easy  to  see  what 
difficulties  had  to  be  surmounted,  how  much 
toil  and  hardship  undergone,  how  many  falls 
and  rapids  to  be  passed  and  portages  made 
to  reach  by  land  these  unknown  parts  and 
tribes  as  far  as  Hudson's  bay  or  strait.  M. 
de  Frontenac  was  in  Canada  on  the  return 
of  the  party  in  1672.  The  discovery  thence- 
forward enabled  them  to  push  the  mission 
much  further  to  the  north  and  draw  some 
elect  from  those  distant  nations  to  receive 
the  first  rudiments  of  Christianity,  until  in 
1686  the  victorious  arms  of  the  king,  under 
the  guidance  of  M.  de  Troye,  D'Hibcrville, 
Ste.  Helaine  and  a  number  of  brave  Cana- 
90 


LA    SALLE 

dians,  by  order  of  the  Marquis  d'Enonville, 
then  governor-general  of  the  country,  con- 
quered these  northern  parts,  where,  as  the 
PYench  arms  are  still  gloriously  maintained, 
the  zeal  of  the  Jesuit  fathers  is  employed 
in  publishing  the  gospel. 

The  unwearied  charity  of  those  illustrious 
missionaries  advanced  their  labors  with 
much  more  success  during  the  present 
epoch  among  the  Ottawa  nations,  seconded 
by  the  great  zeal  of  Frontenac's  protection 
and  the  ascendant  which  the  wisdom  of  the 
Governor  had  acquired  over  the  savages. 
A  magnificent  church,  furnished  with  the 
richest  vestments,  was  built  at  the  mission 
of  St.  Mary's  of  the  sault ;  that  of  the  bay 
of  the  Fetid  [Puants,  Green  Bay]  and  Mi- 
chilimakinak  Island  were  more  and  more 
increased  by  the  gathering  of  Indian  tribes. 
The  missions  around  Lake  G>nde  (Supe- 
rior), further  north,  were  also  increased. 
This  lake  alone  is  one  hundred  and  fifty 
miles  long,  sixty  wide  and  about  five  hun- 
dred in  circuit,  inhabited  by  different  na- 
tions, whence  we  may  form  an  idea  of  thr 
labors  of  the  missionaries  in  five  or  six  es- 
tablishments. Finally,  in  the  last  years  of 
M.  de  Frontenac's  first  administration, 
Sieur  du  Luth,  a  man  of  talent  and  experi- 
ence, opened  a  way  to  the  missionaries  and 

91 


JOURNEYS    OF 

the  gospel  in  many  different  nations  turning 
toward  the  north  of  that  lake,  where  he  even 
built  a  fort.  He  advanced  as  far  as  the  lake 
of  the  Issati,  called  Lake  Buade,  from  the 
family  name  of  M.  de  Frontenac,  planting 
the  arms  of  his  majesty  in  several  nations 
on  the  right  and  left,  where  the  mission- 
aries still  make  every  effort  to  introduce 
Christianity,  the  only  fruit  which  indeed 
consists  in  the  baptism  of  some  dying  chil- 
dren and  in  rendering  adults  inexcusable 
at  God's  judgment  by  the  gospel  preached 
to  them, 

I  shall  hereafter  limit  myself  to  publish 
the  great  discoveries  made  by  order  of  the 
king,  under  the  command  of  M.  de  Fron- 
tenac and  the  direction  of  M.  de  la  Salle,  as 
being  those  which  promised  the  greatest 
fruits  for  the  establishment  of  the  faith,  if 
in  course  of  time  they  are  resumed  and  sup- 
ported as  they  deserve. 

The  Sieur  de  la  Salle,  having  completed 
the  construction  of  Fort  Frontenac  and 
greatly  advanced  the  establishment  of 
French  and  Indian  settlements,  was  induced 
by  the  report  of  many  tribes  to  believe  that 
great  progress  could  be  made  by  pushing 
on  the  discoveries  by  the  lakes  into  the 
River  Mississippi,  which  he  then  supposed 
to  empty  into  the  Red  Sea  (Gulf  of  Cali- 
92 


LA    SALLE 

fomia),^  He  made  a  voyage  to  France  in 
1677  and,  favored  by  letters  from  the  Count 
de  Frontenac,  obtained  of  the  court  neces- 
sary powers  to  undertake  and  carry  out  this 
great  design  at  his  own  expense. 

Furnished  with  these  powers,  he  arrived 
in  Canada  toward  the  close  of  September, 
1678,  with  the  Sieur  de  Tonty,  an  Italian 
gentleman,  full  of  spirit  and  resolution,  who 
afterward  so  courageously  and  faithfully 
seconded  him  in  all  his  designs.  He  had 
also  with  him  thirty  men — pilots,  sailors, car- 
penters and  other  mechanics,  with  all  things 
necessary  for  his  expedition.  Some  Cana- 
dians having  joined  him,  he  sent  all  his 
party  in  advance  to  Fort  Frontenac,  where 
Father  Gabriel  de  la  Ribourde  and  Father 
Luke  Buisset  were  already,  and  where  Fa- 
thers Louis  Hennepin,  Zenobius  Membre 
and  Melithon  Watteau  now  repaired.  They 
were  all  three  missionaries  of  our  province 
of  St.  Anthony  of  Padua,  in  Artois,  as  well 
as  Father  Luke  Buisset,  his  majesty  having 
honored  the  Recollects  with  the  care  of  the 
spiritual  direction  of  the  expedition  by  ex- 
press orders  addressed  to  Father  Valentine 

'  This  assertion  seems  perfectly  gratuitous,  and 
is  not  justified  by  the  letters-patent  to  La  Salle. 
Joliet's  return  set  the  matter  at  rest  and  left  no 
doubt  as  to  its  emptying  into  the  gulf.  [Cf.  Hen- 
nepin. (Shea's  Edition),  Description  of  Louisi- 
ana, 60,  61.] 

93 


JOURNEYS    OF 

le  Roux,  commissary  provincial  and  supe- 
rior of  the  mission.  Tlie  Sieur  de  la  Salle 
soon  followed  them,  the  Almighty  preserv- 
ing him  from  many  perils  in  that  long  voy- 
age from  Quebec,  over  falls  and  rapids  to 
Fort  Frontenac,  where  he  arrived  at  last, 
much  emaciated.^  Deriving  new  strength 
from  his  great  courage,  he  issued  all  his 
orders  and  sent  off  his  troop  in  a  brigantine 
for  Niagara  with  Father  Louis  on  the  i8th 
of  November. 

The  navigation,  in  which  they  had  to  en- 
counter many  dangers  and  even  disasters 
crossing  the  great  lake  in  so^  advanced  a 
season,  prevented  their  reaching  Niagara 
River  before  the  5th  of  December.  On  the 
sixth  they  entered  the  river,  and  the  follow- 
ing days,  by  canoe  and  land,  advanced  to 
the  spot  where  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle 
intended  to  raise  a  fort  and  build  a 
bark  above  Niagara  Falls,  whence  the 
St.  Lawrence  {Le  Fleuve)  communicated 
with  Lake  Conty  (Erie)  and  Lake  Fron- 
tenac (Ontario)  by  the  said  falls  and 
river,  which  is,  as  it  were,  the  strait  of 
communication. 

A  glance  at  the  map  will  show  that  this 
project,  with  that  of  Fort  Frontenac  and 
the  fort  he  was  about  to  build  at  Niagara, 

['  Dec.  16,  1678.    Cf  Margry  I.,  575.] 
94 


LA    SALLE 

might  excite  some  jealousy  among  the  Iro- 
quois who  dwelt  in  the  neighborhood  of 
the  great  lake.  The  Sieur  de  la  Salle,  with 
his  usual  address,  met  the  principal  chiefs 
of  those  tribes  in  conference  and  gained 
them-  so  completely  that  they  not  only 
agreed  to  it,  but  even  offered  to  contribute 
with  all  their  means  to  the  execution  of  his 
design.  Tliis  great  concert  lasted  some 
time.  The  Sieur  de  la  Salle  also  sent  many 
canoes  to  trade  north  and  south  of  the  lake 
among  these  tribes. 

Meanwhile,  as  certain  persons  traversed 
with  all  their  might  the  project  of  the  Sieur 
de  la  Salle,  they  insinuated  feelings  of  dis- 
trust in  the  Seneca  Iroquois  as  the  fort 
building  at  Niagara  began  to  advance,  and 
they  succeeded  so  well  that  the  fort  became 
an  object  of  suspicion  and  the  works  had  to 
be  suspended  for  a  time,  and  he  had  to  be 
satisfied  with  a  house  surrounded  by  pal- 
isades. The  Sieur  de  la  Salle  did  not  fail 
to  give  prompt  orders ;  he  made  frequent 
voyages  from  Fort  Frontenac  to  Niagara, 
during  the  winter  on  the  ice,  in  the  spring 
with  vessels  loaded  with  provisions.  In  all 
the  opposition  raised  by  those  envious  of 
him  fortune  seemed  to  side  with  them 
against  him;  the  pilot  who  directed  one  of 
his  well-loaded  barks  lost  it  on  Lake  Fron- 
95 


JOURNEYS    OF 

tenac*  When  the  snow  began  to  melt  he  sent 
fifteen  of  his  men  to  trade  on  the  lake  in 
canoes  as  far  as  the  IlHnois,  to  prepare  him 
the  way  till  his  bark  building  at  Niagara 
was  completed.  It  was  perfectly  ready  in, 
the  month  of  August,  1679. 

The  father  commissary  had  started  some 
time  before  them  from  Quebec  for  the  fort 
to  give  the  orders  incumbent  on  his  office 
and  put  in  force  those  expedited  in  the 
month  of  July,  by  which  Father  Gabriel  was 
named  superior  of  the  new  expedition,  to 
be  accompanied  by  Father  Louis  Hennepin, 
Zenobius  Membre  and  Melithon  Watteaux, 
the  latter  to  remain  at  Niagara  and  make  it 
his  mission,  while  Father  Luke  should  re- 
main at  the  fort. 

The  three  former  accordingly  embarked 
on  the  7th  of  August  with  Monsieur  de  la 
Salle  and  his  whole  party  in  the  vessel, 
which  had  been  named  the  Griffin  in  honor 
of  the  arms  of  Monsieur  de  Frontenac.  Fa- 
ther Melithon  remained  at  the  house  at  Ni- 
agara, with  some  laborers  and  clerks.  The 
same  day  they  sailed  for  Lake  Conty,  after 
passing,  contrary  to  all  expectations,  the 
currents  of  the  strait.  This  was  due  to  the 
resolution  and  address  of  the  Sieur  de  la 
Salle,  his  men  having  before  his  arrival  used 

[*  Jan.  8,  1679.    Cf.  Margry  I.,  576.] 
96 


LA    SALLE 

every  means  to  no  purpose.  It  appeared  a 
kind  of  marvel,  considering  the  rapidity  of 
the  current  in  the  strait,  which  neither  man 
nor  animal  nor  any  ordinary  vessel  can  re- 
sist, much  less  ascend. 

The  map  will  show  that  from  this  place 
you  sail  up  Lake  Conty  (Erie)  to  Lake  Or- 
leans (Huron),  which  terminates  in  Lake 
Dauphin  (Michigan),  these  lakes  being  each 
a  hundred  or  a  hundred  and  twenty  leagues 
long  by  forty  or  fifty  wide,  communicating 
with  one  another  by  easy  channels  and 
straits,  which  offer  vessels  a  convenient  and 
beautiful  navigation.  All  these  lakes  are 
full  of  fish;  the  country  is  most  finely  sit- 
uated, the  soil  temperate;  being  north  and 
south  bordered  by  vast  prairies,  which  ter- 
minate in  hills  covered  with  vines,  fruit- 
trees,  groves  and  tall  woods,  all  scattered 
here  and  there,  so  that  one  would  think  that 
the  ancient  Romans,  princes  and  nobles 
would  have  made  them  as  many  villas.  The 
soil  is  everywhere  equally  fertile. 

The  Sieur  de  la  Salle,  having  entered 
Lake  Conty  on  the  7th,  crossed  it  in  three 
days,  and  on  the  loth  reached  the  strait 
(Detroit),  by  which  he  entered  Lake  Or- 
leans. The  voyage  was  interrupted  by  a 
storm  as  violent  as  could  be  met  in  the  open 
sea ;  our  people  lost  all  hope  of  escape ;  but 
97 


JOURNEYS   OF 

a  vow  which  they  made  to  St.  Anthony  of 
Padua,  the  patron  of  mariners,  delivered 
them  by  a  kind  of  miracle,^  so  that  after  long 
making  head  against  the  wind,  the  vessel 
on  the  27th  reached  Missilimakinak,  which 
is  north  of  the  strait,  by  which  we  go  from 
Lake  Orleans  to  Lake  Dauphin. 

No  vessels  had  yet  been  seea  sailing  on  the 
lakes,  yet  an  enterprise  which  should  have 
been  sustained  by  all  well-meaning  persons 
for  the  glory  of  God  and  the  service  of  the 
king  had  produced  precisely  the  opposite 
feelings  and  effects,  which  had  been  already 
communicated  to  the  Hurons,  the  Outaoiiats 
of  the  island  the  neighboring  nations,  to 
make  them  ill  affected.  The  Sieur  de  la 
Salle  even  found  here  the  fifteen  men  whom 
he  had  sent  in  the  spring  prejudiced  against 
him  and  seduced  from  his  service ;  a  part  of 
his  goods  wasted,  far  from  having  pro- 
ceeded to  the  Illinois  to  trade  according  to 
their  orders ;  the  Sieur  de  Tonty,  who  was 
at  their  head,  having  in  vain  made  every 
effort  to  inspire  them  with  fidelity.* 

At  last  he  weighed  anchor,  on  the  2d  of 
September,  and  arrived  pretty  safely  at  the 
Bay  of  the  Fetid   (Green  Bay,  at  the  en- 

["  Cf.  Hennepin,  Louisiana,  Shea,  ed.)  96.] 

°  La  Salle's  sending  them  was  a  violation  of  his 

patent.     See  Historical  Collections  of  Louisiana, 

vol.  I.,  p.  35- 

98 


LA    SALLE 

trance  of  Lake  Dauphin,  forty  leagues  from 
Missilimakinak.  Would  to  God  that  the 
Sieur  de  la  Salle  had  continued  his  route 
in  the  vessel.  His  wisdom  could  not  foresee 
the  misfortunes  which  awaited  him;  he 
deemed  proper  to  send  it  back  by  the  same 
route  to  Niagara  with  the  furs  already 
bought,  in  order  to  pay  his  creditors.  He 
even  left  in  it  a  part  of  his  goods  and  im- 
plements, which  were  not  easy  to  transport. 
The  captain  had  orders  to  return  with  the 
vessel  as  soon  as  possible  and  join  us  in  the 
Illinois. 

Meanwhile,  on  the  i8th  of  September,  the 
Sieur  de  la  Salle,  with  our  fathers  and  sev- 
enteen men,  continued  their  route  in  canoes 
by  Lake  Dauphin,  from  the  Pouteotatamis 
to  the  mouth  of  the  river  of  the  Miamis  (St, 
Joseph's),  where  they  arrived  on  the  first 
of  November.  This  place  had  been  ap- 
pointed a  rendezvous  for  twenty  French- 
men, who  came  by  the  opposite  shore,  and 
also  for  the  Sieur  de  Tonty,  who  had  been 
sent  by  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  to  Missilimaki- 
nak on  another  expedition. 

The  Sieur  de  la  Salle  built  a  fort  there  to 
protect  his  men  and  property  against  any 
attack  of  the  Indians ;  our  religious  soon 
had  a  bark  cabin  erected  to  serve  as  a  chapel, 
where    they    exercised   their   ministry    for 

99 


JOURNEYS   OF 

French  and  Indians  until  the  3d  of  Decem- 
ber, when,  leaving  four  men  in  the  fort,  they 
went  in  search  of  the  portage  which  would 
bring,  them  to  the  Seignelay  (Illinois) 
which  descends  to  the  Mississippi.  They 
embarked  on  this  river  to  the  number  of 
thirty  or  forty,  by  which,  after  a  hundred 
or  a  hundred  and  twenty  leagues'  sail,  they 
arrived,  toward  the  close  of  December,  at 
the  largest  Illinois  village,  composed  of 
about  four  or  five  hundred  cabins,  each  of 
five  or  six  families. 

It  is  the  custom  of  these  tribes  at  harvest 
time  to  put  their  Indian  corn  in  caches,  in 
order  to  keep  it  for  summer,  when  meat 
easily  spoils,  and  to  go  and  pass  the  winter 
in  hunting  wild  cattle  and  beaver,  carrying 
very  little  grain.  That  of  our  people  had 
run  short,  so  that,  passing  by  the  Illinois 
village,  they  were  obliged,  there  being  no 
one  there,  to  take  some  Indian  corn,  as  much 
as  they  deemed  necessary  for  their  subsist- 
ence. 

They  left  it  on  the  ist  of  January,  1680, 
and  by  the  4th  were  thirty  leagues  lower 
down,  amid  the  Illinois  camp ;  they  were 
encamped  on  both  sides  of  the  river,  which 
is  very  narrow  there,  but  soon  after  forms 
a  lake  about  seven  leagues  long  and  about 
one  wide,  called  Pimitcoui,  meaning  in  their 
100 


LA   SALLE 

language  that  there  are  plenty  of  fat  beasts 
there.  The  Sieur  de  la  Salle  estimated  it  at 
33°  45'.  It  is  remarkable,  because  the  Illi- 
nois River,  which  for  several  months  in 
winter  is  frozen  down  to  it,  never  is  from 
this  place  to  the  mouth,  although  naviga- 
tion is  at  times  interrupted  by  accumula- 
tions of  floating  ice  from  above. 

Our  people  had  been  assured  that  the  Illi- 
nois had  been  excited  and  prejudiced  against 
them.  Finding  himself  then  in  the  midst  of 
their  camp,  which  lay  on  both  sides  of  the 
river,  at  a  narrow  pass,  where  the  current 
•was  hurrying  on  the  canoes  faster  than  they 
liked,  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  promptly  put  his 
men  under  arms  and  ranged  his  canoes 
abreast  so  as  to  occupy  the  whole  breadth 
of  the  river;  the  canoes  nearest  the  two 
banks,  in  which  were  the  Sieur  de  Tonty 
and  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle,  were  not  more 
than  half  a  pistol  shot  from  the  shore.  The 
Illinois,  who  had  not  yet  discovered  the 
little  flotilla  ranged  in  battle  order,  were 
alarmed  ;  some  ran  to  arms,  others  fled  in  in- 
credible confusion.  The  Sieur  de  la  Salle 
had  a  calumet  of  peace,  but  would  not  show 
it,  not  liking  to  appear  weak«before  them). 
As  they  were  soon  so  near  that  they  could 
understand  each  other,  they  asked  our 
Frenchmen  who  they  were.     They  replied 

lOI 


JOURNEYS    OF 

that  they  were  French,  still  keeping  their 
arms  ready,  and  letting  the  current  bear 
them  down  in  order,  because  there  was  no 
landing  place  till  below  the  camp. 

The  Indians,  alarmed  and  intimidated  by 
this  bold  conduct  (although  they  were  sev- 
eral thousand  against  a  handful),  immedi- 
ately presented  three  calumets ;  our  people 
at  the  same  time  presented  theirs,  and,  their 
terror  changing  to  joy,  they  conducted  our 
party  to  their  cabins,  showed  us  a  thousand 
civilities  and  sent  to  call  back  those  who  had 
fled.  They  were  told  that  we  came  only  to 
give  them  a  knowledge  of  the  true  God,  to 
defend  them  against  their  enemies,  to  bring 
them  arms  and  other  conveniences  of  life. 
Besides  presents  made  them,  they  were  paid 
for  the  Indian  corn  taken  at  their  village ;  a 
close  alliance  was  made  with  them,  the  rest 
of  the  day  being  spent  in  feasts  and  mutual 
greetings. 

All  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle's  intrepidity  and 
skill  were  needed  to  keep  the  alliance  intact, 
as  Monsoela,''  one  of  the  chiefs  of  the  na- 
tion of  Maskoutens,  came  that  very  evening 
to  traverse  it.  It  was  known  that  he  was 
sent  by  others  than  those  of  his  nation ;  he 
had  even  with  him  some  Miamis,  and  young 
men  bearing  kettles,  knives,  axes  and  other 

I'  Monso,  according  to  Margry  II.,  41.] 
102 


LA    SALLE 

goods.  He  had  been  chosen  for  this  em- 
bassy, rather  than  a  Miami  chief,  to  give 
more  plausibility  to  what  he  should  say,  the 
Illinois  not  having  been  at  war  with  the 
Maskoutens,  as  they  had  with  the  Miamis. 
He  caballed  even  the  whole  night,  speaking 
of  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  as  an  intriguer,  a 
friend  of  the  Iroquois,  coming  to  the  Ili- 
nois  only  to  open  the  way  to  their  enemies, 
who  were  coming  on  all  sides  with  the 
French  to  destroy  them ;  he  made  them  pres- 
ents of  all  that  he  had  brought,  and  even 
told  them  that  he  came  on  behalf  of  several 
Frenchmen,  whom  he  named. 

This  council  was  held  at  night,  the  time 
chosen  by  the  Indians  to  transact  secret 
business.  This  ambassador  retired  the  same 
night,  so  that  the  next  day  the  Ilinois  chiefs 
were  found  completely  changed,  cold  and 
distrustful,  appearing  even  to  plot  against 
our  Frenchmen,  who  were  shaken  by  the 
change ;  but  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle,  whO'  had 
attached  one  of  the  chiefs  to  him  particu- 
larly by  some  present,  learned  from  him  the 
subject  of  this  change.  His  address  soon 
dispelled  all  these  suspicions,  but  did  not 
prevent  six  of  his  men,  already  tampered 
with  and  prejudiced  at  Michilimakinak, 
from  deserting  that  very  day. 

The  Sieur  de  la  Salle  not  only  reassured 
103 


JOURNEYS  OF 

that  nation,  but  found  means  in  the  sequel 
to  disabuse  the  Maskoutens  and  Miamis 
and  to  form  an  alhance  between  them  and 
the  Ilinois  which  lasted  as  long  as  the  Sieur 
de  la  Salle  was  in  the  country. 

With  this  assurance  the  little  a-rmy,  on 
the  14th  of  January,  1680,  the  floating  ice 
from  above  having  ceased,  repaired  to  a  lit- 
tle eminence,  a  site  quite  near  the  Ilinois 
camp,  where  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  imme- 
diately set  to  work  to  build  a  fort,  which 
he  called  Crevecoeur,  on  account  of  the  many 
disappointments  he  had  experienced,^  but 
which  never  shook  his  firm  resolve.  The 
fort  was  well  advanced  and  the  little  vessel 
already  up  to  the  string-piece  by  the  first 
of  March,  when  he  resolved  to  proceed  to 
Fort  Frontenac.  There  were  four  or  five 
hundred  leagues  to  go  by  land,  but,  not 
finding  his  brigantine,  the  Griffin,  return, 
nor  those  he  had  sent  on  to  meet  her,  and 
foreseeing  the  disastrous  consequences  of 
the  probable  loss  of  his  vessel,  his  courage 
rose  above  the  difficulties  of  so  long  and 
painful  a  journey. 

As  he  had  chosen  Father  Louis  [Henne- 
pin], and  as  the  latter  had  offered  to  con- 

['  It  is  more  probable  that  the  fort  was  named 
after  a   Dutch  city,  in  the  seige  of  which    lonty 
had  participated.     Cf.  Le  Clercq,  Estab't  of  the 
Faith  (Shea,  ed.),  II.,  123.] 
104 


LA    SALLE 

tinue  the  discovery  toward  the  north  by  as- 
cending the  Mississippi,  the  Sieur  de  la 
Salle  reserving  to  himself  its  continuation 
in  canoe  by  descending  till  he  found  the  sea. 
Father  Louis  set  out  in  canoe  from  Fort 
Crevecceur  on  the  29th  of  February,  1680, 
with  two  men,  well  armed  and  equipped, 
who  had  besides  twelve  hundred  livres  in 
goods,  which  make  a  good  passport.  The 
enterprise  was  great  and  hardy,  although  it 
did  not  equal  the  great  zeal  of  the  intrepid 
missionary,  who  undertook  and  continued 
it  with  all  the  firmness,  constancy  and  edi- 
fication which  can  be  desired,  amid  incon- 
ceivable toils. 

Although  the  discovery  had  already  been 
pushed  four  or  five  hundred  leagues  into 
Louisiana,^  from  Fort  Frontenac  to  Fort 
Crevecoeur,  this  great  march  can  be  con- 
sidered only  as  a  prelude  and  preparation 
for  enterprises  still  more  vast  and  an  en- 
trance to  be  made  in  countries  still  more 
advantageous. 

I  have  hitherto  given  only  a  short 
abridgment  of  the  relations  which  Father 
Zenobius  Membre  gives  of  the  commence- 

'  In  fact,  no  discovery  had  been  made;  the  Ili- 
nois  country  was  visited  by  traders  before  Mar- 
quette's second  voyage  to  it,  and  was  perfectly 
known;  Allouez,  too,  was  there  shortly  before 
this,  as  La  Salle  himself  states. 

105 


JOURNEYS    OF  ^ 

ment  of  this  enterprise.  Father  Louis,  whom 
we  see  starting  for  the  upper  Mississippi, 
lias  pubHshed  a  description  of  the  countries 
which  he  visited  and  into  which  he  carried 
the  gospel.  I  therefore  refer  my  reader  to 
it  without  repeating  it  here.  We  have,  then, 
only  to  describe  what  is  most  essential  and 
important  in  this  discovery  conducted  by 
the  personal  labors  of  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle 
in  the  subsequent  years. 

CHAPTER  V. 

NARRATIVE  OF  THE  ADVENTURES  OF  LA 
SALLE's  party  AT  FORT  CREVECCEUR,  IN 
ILINOIS,  FROM  FEBRUARY,  1680,  TO 
JUNE,  1 68 1,  BY  FATHER  ZENOBIUS 
MEMBRE,  RECOLLECT.^ 

Father  Louis  (Hennepin)  having  set 

out  on  the  29th  of  February,  1680,  the  Sieur 

de  la  Salle  left  the  Sieur  de  Tonty  as  com- 

*  If  the  projects  of  La  Salle  had  raised  up 
against  him  pertinacious  enemies,  they  neverthe- 
less drew  around  him  a  few  faithful  and  devoted 
friends,  and  none  more  conspicuous  than  the  ex- 
cellent missionary  whose  journals  we  here  insert. 
The  amiable  Father  Membre  is  the  name  under 
which  all  seem  to  delight  in  presenting  him  to  us, 
so  much  were  they  touched  by  his  goodness  of 
heart.  Were  it  prudent  to  credit  Hennepin's  last 
work  for  anything  new,  we  might  say  that  Mem- 
bre was  born  at  Bapaume,  a  small  fortified  town 
now  in  France,  but  then  in  the  Spanish  Nether- 
106 


LA   SALLE 

mander  of  Fort  Crevecoeur,  with  ammuni- 
tions and  provisions  and  peltries  to  pay  the 
workmen   as   agreed,   and   merchandise  to 

lands,  and  that  he  was  a  cousin  of  Father  Chris- 
tian le  Clercq,  who  published  his  journals  in  the 
"Etablissement  de  la  Foi."  It  was  probably  on 
entering  the  Recollect  convent  in  Artois,  where 
he  was  the  first  novice  in  the  new  province  of 
St.  Anthony,  that  he  assumed  the  name  of  Zeno- 
bius.  With  his  cousin,  Le  Clercq,  he  was  the 
first  sent  by  that  province  to  Canada,  where  he 
arrived  in  1675,  from  which  time  till  that  of  his 
departure  for  Frontenac,  in  September  1678,  he 
was  probably  employed  at  the  convent  of  Quebec, 
as  his  name  does  not  appear  in  any  of  the  neigh- 
boring parish  registers  examined  to  obtain  his 
autograph.  From  Fort  Frontenac  he  accompanied 
La  Salle  to  Niagara,  Mackinaw,  and  at  last  to 
Fort  Crevecoeur,  in  Illinois.  Here  he  was  left  by 
that  commander  with  Tonty  and  Father  Gabriel 
de  la  Rebourde,  with  whom,  on  the  inroad  of  the 
Iroquois  and  flight  of  the  Illinois,  he  endeav- 
ored to  reach  Green  Bay.  Father  Gabriel  perished 
on  the  way  by  the  hand  of  the  Kikapoos ;  the  sur- 
vivors were  hospitably  received  by  the  Jesuits  at 
Green  Bay,  where  they  wintered,  and  in  the  spring 
proceeded  to  Mackinaw  with  Father  Enjalran. 
Here  La  Salle  soon  joined  them,  and  Membre, 
after  a  voyage  to  Fort  Frontenac,  and  probably 
to  Montreal,  with  that  commander  in  the  spring 
of  1681,  descended  the  Mississippi  with  him  to 
the  gulf,  and  on  their  return  proceeded,  at  his 
request,  to  France,  in  1682,  to  lay  before  the  gov- 
ernment the  result  of  the  expedition.  He  left  a 
journal  of  his  voyage  at  Quebec;  but,  as  he  de- 
clined communicating  it  to  the  new  governor,  De 
la  Barre,  the  latter,  in  his  report  to  the  home  gov- 
ernment, throws  imputations  on  any  account  of 
the  missionary,  which  mtist,  however,  be  ascribed 
only  to  bias  and  dissatisfaction.  After  fulfilling 
his  mission  at  court  Father  Membre  became  war- 
den of  the  Recollects  at  Bapaume,  and  remained 
so  till  he  was  appointed,  at  La  Salle's  request, 
107 


JOURNEYS    OF 

trade  with  and  buy  provisions  as  we  needed 
them,  and,  having  lastly  given  orders  as  to 

superior  of  the  missionaries  who  were  to  accom- 
pany his  expedition  by  sea.  Father  Membre 
reached  Texas  in  safety,  and,  though  nearly 
drowned  in  the  wreck  of  one  of  the  vessels,  was 
left  by  La  Salle  in  good  health  at  Fort  St.  Louis, 
in  January,  1687,  intending  as  soon  as  possible  to 
begin  a  mission  among  the  friendly  Cenis  with 
Father  Maximus  le  Clercq.  The  colony  was, 
however,  cut  to  pieces  by  the  Indians,  for  when, 
in  1689,  a  party  of  Spaniards  set  out  to  expel  the 
.French  as  intruders,  all  was  silent  as  they  drew 
near.  To  their  horror  they  found  on  reaching  it 
-nothing  but  dead  bodies  within  and  without : 
priest  and  soldier,  husband  and  wife,  old  and 
young,  lay  dead  before  them,  pierced  with  arrows 
or  crushed  with  clubs.  Touched  with  compassion, 
the  Spaniards  committed  their  remains  to  a  com- 
mon grave  and  retired.  Here  Father  Membre 
perished,  but  earth  has  no  record  of  the  day.  He 
was  not,  apparently,  a  man  of  refined  education, 
nor  is  this  a  reproach,  as  his  order  was  not  in- 
tended to  direct  colleges  and  seats  of  learning, 
■but  to  preach  to  the  poor  and  lowly.  But  though 
his  journal  is  often  involved  and  obscure,  it  bears 
intrinsic  marks  of  fidelity,  and  shows  him  to 
have  been  less  prejudiced  than  many  of  his  com- 
panions. Fitted  rather  for  the  quiet  direction  of 
a  simple  flock,  his  zeal  could  not  bear  up  against 
the  hardships  and  barrenness  of  an  Indian  mis- 
sion, for  which  no  previous  training  or  associa- 
tions had  fitted  him,  while  his  many  wanderings 
tended  still  more  to  prevent  his  usefulness.  His 
only  permanent  mission  was  in  Illinois,  where  he 
labored  assiduously  with  Father  Gabriel  from 
March  to  September,  1680,  notwithstanding  the 
repugnance  wihch  he  felt  for  the  ungrateful  field. 
They  are,  accordingly,  after  the  Jesuits  Marquette 
^and  Allouez,  the  first  missionaries  of  Illinois,  and 
■worthy  of  a  distinguished  place  in  her  annals,  and 
of  the  noble  eulogy  of  Mr.  Sparks,  on  the  mis- 
-sionaries  of  New  France. 
108 


LA   SALLE 

what  was  to  be  done  in  his  absence,  set  out 
with  four  Frenchmen  and  an  Indian  on  the 
2d  of  March,  1680.  He  arrived  on  the  nth 
at  the  great  IHnois  village  where  I  then  was, 
and  thence,  after  twenty-four  hours'  stay, 
he  continued  his  route  on  foot  over  the  ice 
to  Fort  Frontenac.^  From  our  arrival  at 
Fort  Crevecoeur,  on  the  14th  of  January 
past.  Father  Gabriel,  our  superior;  Father 
Louis  and  myself  had  raised  a  cabin,  in 
which  we  had  established  some  little  regu- 
larity, exercising  our  functions  as  mission- 
aries to  the  French  of  our  party  and  the  IH- 
nois Indians,  who  came  in  crowds.  As  by 
the  end  of  February  I  already  knew  a  part 
of  their  language,  because  I  spent  the  whole 
of  the  day  in  the  Indian  camp,  which  was 
but  half  a  league  off,  our  father  superior 
appointed  me  to  follow  when  they  were 
about  to  return  to  their  village.  A  chief 
named  Oumahouha  had  adopted  me  as  his 
son  in  the  Indian  fashion,  and  M.  de  la 
Salle  had  made  him  presents  to  take  care  of 
me.  Father  Gabriel  resolved  to  stay  at  the 
fort  with  the  Sieur  de  Tonty  and  the  work- 
men ;  this  had  been,  too,  the  request  of  the 
Sieur  de  la  Salle,  who  hoped  that  by  his 
credit  and  the  apparent  confidence  of  the 
[*  Shea  in  Estab't  of  the  Faith,  II.,  130,  note, 
calls  this  journey  "the  only  really  bold  and  adven- 
turous act  known  of  La  Salle."] 
109 


JOURNEYS    OF 

people  in  him  he  would  be  able  to  keep  them 
in  order;  but  God  permitted  that  the  good 
intentions  in  which  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle 
thought  he  left  them  should  not  last  long. 
On  the  thirteenth  he  himself  had  met  two 
of  his  men  whom  he  had  sent  to  Missili- 
makinak  to  meet  his  vessel,  but  who  had 
got  no  tidings  of  it.  He  addressed  them 
to  the  Sieur  de  Tonty;  but  these  evil-dis- 
posed men  caballed  so  well  that  they  ex- 
cited suspicion  and  dissatisfaction  in  most 
of  those  there,  so  that  almost  all  deserted, 
carrying  off  the  ammunition,  provisions  and 
all  that  was  in  store.  Two  of  them  who 
were  conducting  Father  Gabriel  to  the  Ili- 
nois  village,  where  M.  de  Tonty  had  come 
on  a  visit,  abandoned  the  good  father  at 
night  in  the  middle  of  the  road  and  spiked 
the  guns  of  the  Sieur  de  Boisrondet  and  the 
man  called  Lesperance,  who  were  in  the 
same  canoe,  but  not  in  their  plot.  They 
informed  the  Sieur  de  Tonty,  who,  finding 
himself  destitute  of  everything,  sent  four 
of  those  who  remained  by  two  different 
routes  to  inform  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle. 

The  perfidious  wretches  assembled  at  the 
fort  which  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  had  built 
at  the  mouth  of  Myamis'  River,  demolished 
the  fort,  carried  off  all  that  was  there  and, 
as  we  learned  some  months  after,  went  to 
1 10 


LA    SALLE 

Missilimakinak,  where  they  seized  the  pel- 
tries belong-ing  to  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  and 
left  in  store  there  by  him.' 

The  only  g^reat  Ilinois  village  being  com- 
posed of  seven  or  eight  thousand  souls,  Fa- 
ther Gabriel  and  I  had  a  sufficient  field  for 
the  exercise  of  our  zeal,  besides  the  few 
French  who  soon  after  came  there.  There 
are,  moreover,  the  Miamis,  situated  south- 
east by  south  of  the  bottom  of  the  Lake 
Dauphin,  on  the  borders  of  a  pretty  fine 
river,  about  fifteen  leagues  inland  at  41°  N. ; 
the  nation  of  the  Maskoutens  and  Outag-a- 
mies  [Foxes],  who  dwell  at  about  43°  N.,on 
the  banks  of  the  river  called  Melleoki  (Mil- 
wauki),  which  empties  into  Lake  Dauphin, 
very  near  their  village ;  on  the  western  side 
the  Kikapous  and  the  Ainoves  (lowas), 
who  form  two  villages ;  west  of  these  last, 
above  the  River  Checagoumemant,  the  vil- 
lage of  the  Ilinois  Cascaschia,  situated  west 
of  the  bottom  of  Lake  Dauphin,  a  little 
southwest  at  about  41°  N. ;  the  Anthoutan- 
tas  *  [Ottoes]  and  Maskoutens,  Nadoues- 
sions,®  about  one  hundred  and  thirty 
leagues  from  the  Ilinois,  in  three  great  vil- 
lages built  near  a  river  which  empties  into 

["  Cf.  Margry  I.,  503,  584.] 
*The  Otontantas  of  Marquette's  real  map. 
["  The  two  names  go  together  and  refer  to  a 
band  of  Sioux  (Shea).] 

Ill 


JOURNEYS   OF 

the  River  Colbert  on  the  west  side,  above 
that  of  the  IHnois,  almost  opposite  the 
mouth  of  the  Miskoncing,  in  the  same  river. 
I  might  name  here  a  number  of  other  tribes 
with  whom  we  had  intercourse,  and  to 
whom  French  coureurs-de-bois,  or  lawfully 
sent,  rambled  while  I  was  with  the  Illinois, 
under  favor  of  our  discovery. 

The  greater  part  of  these  tribes,  and  es- 
pecially the  Ilinois,  with  whom  I  have  had 
intercourse,  make  their  cabins  of  double 
mats  of  flat  rushes  sewed  together.  They 
are  tall  of  stature^  strong  and  robust,  and 
good  archers ;  they  had  as  yet  no  firearms ; 
we  gave  them  some.  They  are  wandering, 
idle,  fearful,  and  desolate,  almost  without 
respect  for  their  chiefs,  irritable  and  thiev- 
ish. Their  villages  are  not  enclosed  with 
palisades,  and,  being  too  cowardly  to  defend 
them,  they  take  to  flight  at  the  first  news  of 
a  hostile  army.  The  richness  and  fertility  of 
the  country  gives  them  fields  everywhere. 
They  have  used  iron  implements  and  arms 
only  since  our  arrival.  Besides  the  bow, 
they  use  in  war  a  kind  of  short  pike  and 
wooden  maces,®  Hermaphrodites  are  numer- 
ous. They  have  many  wives,  and  often  take 
several  sisters  that  they  may  agree  better; 

*  All  agree  in  the  great  skill  of  the  Illinois  bow- 
men, and  even  as  late  as  1692-93,  when  Rale  was 
with  them,  they  had  not  yet  begun  to  use  guns. 
112 


LA    SALLE 

and  yet  they  are  so  jealous  that  they  cut  off 
their  noses  on  the  slightest  suspicion.  They 
are  lewd,  and  even  unnaturally  so,  having; 
boys  dressed  as  women,  destined  for  in- 
famous purposes.  These  boys  are  employed 
only  in  women's  work,  without  taking  part 
in  the  chase  or  war.  They  are  very  super- 
stitious, although  they  have  no  religious 
worship.  They  are,  besides,  much  given  to- 
play,  like  all  the  Indians  in  America  that  I 
am  able  to  know. 

As  there  are  in  their  country  many  ser- 
pents, these  Indians  know  herbs  much  su~ 
perior  to  our  orvietan  and  theriaque,  for^ 
after  rubbing  themselves  with  them,  they 
can  without  fear  play  with  the  most  ven- 
omous insects,  and  even  put  them  some  dis- 
tance down  their  throat.  They  go  perfectly- 
naked  in  summer,  except  the  feet,  which 
are  covered  with  shoes  of  ox-hide,  and  in. 
winter  they  protect  themselves  against  the 
cold  (which  is  piercing  in  these  parts^ 
though  of  short  duration)  with  skins,  which 
they  dress  and  card  very  neatly. 

Although  we  w-ere  almost  destitute  of 
succor,  yet  the  Sieur  de  Tonty  never  lost 
courage ;  he  kept  up  his  position  among  the 
Illinois  either  by  inspiring  them  with  all  the 
hopes  which  he  built  on  the  Sieur  de  la 
Salle's  return  or  by  instructing  them  in  the 
113 


JOURNEYS    OF 

use  of  firearms  and  many  arts  in  the  Euro- 
pean way.  As  during  the  following  summer 
a  rumor  ran  that  the  Miamis  wished  to  move 
and  join  the  Iroquois,  he  taught  them  how 
to  defend  themselves  by  palisades,  and  even 
made  them  erect  a  kind  of  little  fort  with 
intrenchments,  so  that,  had  they  had  a  little 
more  courage,  I  have  no  doubt  they  would 
have  been  in  a  position  to  sustain  themj- 
selves. 

Meanwhile,  from  the  flight  and  desertion 
of  our  men  about  the  middle  of  March  to 
the  month  of  September,  Father  Gabriel  and 
I  devoted  ourselves  constantly  to  the  mis- 
sion. An  Ilinois  named  Asapista,  with 
whom  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  had  contracted 
friendship,  adopted  Father  Gabriel  as  his 
son,  so  that  that  good  father  found  in  his 
cabin  a  subsistence  in  the  Indian  fashion.  As 
wine  failed  us  for  the  celebration  of  the 
divine  mysteries,  we  found  means,  toward 
the  close  of  August,  to  get  wild  grapes 
which  began  to  ripen,  and  we  made  very 
good  wine,  which  served  us  to  say  mass  till 
the  second  disaster,  which  happened  a  few 
days  after.  The  clusters  of  these  grapes 
are  of  prodigious  size,  of  very  agreeable 
taste,  and  have  seeds  larger  than  those  of 
Europe. 

With  regard  to  conversions,  I  can  not 
114 


LA    SALLE 

rely  on  any.  During  the  whole  time  Father 
Gabriel  unraveled  their  language  a  little, 
and  I  can  say  that  I  spoke  so  as  to  make 
myself  understood  by  the  Indians  on  cill 
that  I  wished ;  but  there  is  in  these  savages 
such  an  alienation  from  the  faith,  so  brutal 
and  narrow  a  mind,  such  corrupt  and  anti- 
Christian  morals,  that  great  time  would  be 
needed  to  hope  for  any  fruit.  It  is,  how- 
ever, true  that  I  found  many  of  quite  docile 
character.  We  baptized  some  dying  chil- 
dren and  two  or  three  dying  persons  who 
manifested  proper  dispositions.  As  these 
people  are  entirely  material  in  their  ideas, 
they  would  have  submitted  to  baptism,  had 
we  liked,  but  without  any  knowledge  of  the 
sacrament.  We  found  two  who  had  joined 
us  and  promised  to  follow  us  everywhere; 
we  believed  that  they  would  keep  their  word 
and  that  by  this  means  we  would  insure 
their  baptisms;  but  I  afterwards  felt  great 
scruples  when  I  learned  that  an  Indian 
named  Chassagouache,  who  had  been  bap- 
tized, had  died  in  the  hands  of  the  medicine 
mien,  abandoned  to  their  superstitions,  and 
consequently  doubly  a  child  of  hell. 

During  the  summer  we  followed  our  In- 
dians in  their  camps  and  to  the  chase.     I 
also  made  a  voyage  to  the  Myamis  to  learn 
something  of   their  dispositions ;   thence   I 
115 


JOURNEYS    OF 

went  to  visit  other  villages  of  the  Ilinois, 
all,  however,  with  no  great  success,  finding 
only  cause  for  chagrin  at  the  deplorable 
state  and  blindness  of  these  nations.  It  is 
such  that  I  cannot  express  it  fully. 

Thus  far  we  enjoyed  a  pretty  general 
peace,  though  meanwhile  a  cruel  war,  which 
we  knew  not,  was  machinating.  While  we 
were  still  at  Fort  Frontenac,  the  year  before 
the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  learned  that  his  ene- 
mies had,  to  baffle  his  designs,  excited  the 
Iroquois  to  resume  their  former  hostilities 
against  the  Ilinois,  which  had  been  relin- 
quished for  several  years.  They  sought,  too, 
to  draw  the  Miamis  into  the  same  war.  This 
is  a  tribe  which  formerly  dwelt  beyond  the 
Ilinois,  as  regards  the  Iroquois  and  Fort 
Frontenac.  They  had  persuaded  them  to 
invite  the  Iroquois  by  an  embassy  to  join 
them  against  their  common  enemy ;  those 
who  came  to  treat  of  this  affair  with  the 
Iroquois  brought  letters  from  some  ill-dis- 
posed Frenchmen  who  had  correspondents 
in  those  tribes,  for  there  were  at  that  time 
many  coureurs  de  bois. 

The  Sieur  de  la  Salle  happened  to  be 
among  the  Senecas  when  this  embassy  ar- 
rived ;  the  moment  seemed  unfavorable,  and 
the  ambassadors  were  privately  warned  that 
thev  risked  their  lives  if  they  did  not  depart 
ii6 


LA   SALLE 

as  soon  as  possible,  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle 
being  a  friend  of  the  Ilinois.  The  Myamis, 
however,  left  his  former  country  and  carne 
and  took  up  a  position  where  he  is  now  be- 
tween the  Iroquois  and  the  Ilinois.  This 
was  afterward  believed  intentional,  and  we 
having  to  pass  through  both  these  nations 
suspected  by  each  other,  might  become  so 
to  one  of  them,  who  would  then  prevent  our 
progress.  Monsieur  de  la  Salle,  on  his  ar- 
rival at  the  Ilinois  last  year,  made  peace 
between  the  two  nations ;  but,  as  the  Indians 
are  very  inconstant  and  faithless,  the  Iro- 
quois and  the  Myamis  afterwards  united 
against  the  Ilinois  by  means  which  are  dif- 
ferently related. 

Be  that  as  it  may,  about  the  loth  of  Sep- 
tember, in  the  present  year,  1680,  the  Ili- 
nois, allies  of  Chaouenons  (Shawnees), 
were  warned  by  a  Shawnee,  who  was  re- 
turning home  from  an  Ilinois  voyage,  but 
turned  back  to  advise  them,  that  he  had  dis- 
covered an  Iroquois  army,  four  or  five  hun- 
dred strong,  who  had  already  entered  their 
territory.  The  scouts  sent  out  by  the  Ili- 
nois confirmed  what  the  Shawnee  had  said, 
adding  that  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  was  there. 
For  this  there  was  no  foundation,  except 
that  the  Iroquois  chief  had  a  hat  and  a  kind 
of  vest.  They  at  once  talked  of  tomahawk- 
117 


JOURNEYS    OF 

ing  us,  but  the  Sieur  de  Tonty  undeceived 
them,  and,  to  show  the  falsity  of  the  report, 
offered  to  go  with  the  few  men  he  had  to 
fight  the  Iroquois  with  them.  The  IHnois 
had  already  sent  out  to  war  the  greater  part 
of  the  young  men,  yet  the  next  day  they 
took  the  field  against  the  enemy,  whom  the 
Myamis  had  reinforced  with  a  great  num- 
ber of  their  warriors.  This  multitude  terri- 
fied the  Ilinois ;  nevertheless,  they  recovered 
a  little  at  the  solicitation  of  the  Sieur  de 
Tonty  and  the  French.  They  at  first  min- 
gled and  wrangled,  but  the  Sieur  de  Tonty, 
having  grounds  to  fear  for  the  Ilinois,  who 
had  almost  no  firearms,  offered  to  put  mat- 
ters in  negotiation  and  to  go  to  the  Iroquois 
as  a  man  of  peace,  bearing  the  calumet.  The 
latter,  hoping  to  surprise  the  Ilinois,  and 
seeing  their  hopes  baffled  by  the  state  in 
which  they  found  them  resolved  for  battle, 
received  without  any  demur  a  man  who 
came  with  a  calumet  of  peace,  telling  them 
that  the  Ilinois  were  his  brothers,  friends 
of  the  French,  and  under  the  protection  of 
Ononto,  their  common  father.  I  was  beside 
the  Sieur  de  Tonty,  when  an  Iroquois  whom 
I  had  known  in  the  Seneca  village  recog- 
nized me.  These  proposals  for  peace  did 
not,  however,  please  some  young  men, 
whose  hands  itched  for  fight;  suddenly  a 
ii8 


LA    SALLE 

volley  of  balls  and  arrows  came  whizzing 
around  us,  and  a  young"  Onondaga  ran  up 
with  a  drawn  knife  and  struck  M.  de  Tonty 
near  the  heart,  the  knife  fortunately  glanc- 
ing ofif  a  rib.  They  immediately  surrounded 
him  and  wished  to  carry  him  off;  but  when, 
by  his  ears,  which  were  not  pierced,  they 
saw  that  he  was  a  Frenchman,  one  of  the 
Iroquois  chiefs  asked  loudly  what  they  had 
meant  by  striking  a  Frenchman  in  that  way, 
that  he  must  be  spared,  and  drew  forth  a 
belt  of  wampum  to  staunch  the  blood  and 
make  a  plaster  for  the  wound.  Neverthe- 
less, a  mad  young  Iroquois  having  hoisted 
the  Sieur  de  Tonty 's  hat  on  a  gun  to  intimi- 
date the  IHnois,  the  latter  believing  by  this 
sign  that  Tonty  was  dead,  we  were  all  in 
danger  of  losing  our  heads ;  but  the  Iro- 
quois having  told  us  to  show  ourselves  and 
stop  both  armies,  we  did  so.^  The  Iroquois 
received  the  calumet  and  pretended  to  re- 
tire; but  scarcely  had  the  Ilinois  reached 
his  village  when  the  Iroquois  appeared  on 
the  opposite  hills. 

This  movement  obliged  the  Sieur  de 
Tonty  and  the  chiefs  of  the  nation  to  depute 
me  to  these  savages  to  know  their  reason. 
This  was  not  a  very  agreeable  mission  to  a 
savage  tribe,  with  arms  in  their  hands,  espe- 

V  a.  Margry  I.,  510,  586.] 

119 


JOURNEYS   OF 

cially  after  the  risk  I  had  already  run ;  nev- 
ertheless, I  made  up  my  mind,  and  God  pre- 
served me  from  all  harm.  I  spoke  with 
them ;  they  treated  me  very  kindly,  and  at 
last  told  me  that  the  reason  of  their  ap- 
proach was  that  they  had  nothing  to  eat.  I 
made  my  report  to  the  Ilinois,  who  gave 
them  their  fill^  and  even  offered  to  trade  for 
beaver  and  other  furs,  very  abundant  in 
those  parts.  The  Iroquois  agreed,  hostages 
were  given  and  received,  and  I  went  with 
an  Ilinois  to  the  enemy's  camp,  where  we 
slept.  The  Iroquois  came  in  greater  nunv- 
bers  into  that  of  the  Ilinois,  and  even  ad- 
vanced to  their  village,  committing  hostili- 
ties so  far  as  to  disinter  the  dead  and  destroy 
their  corn ;  in  a  word,  seeking  a  quarrel, 
under  show  of  peace,  they  fortified  them- 
selves in  the  village.  The  Ilinois,  on  the 
first  announcement  of  war,  had  made  their 
families  draw  ofiF  behind  a  hill,  to  put  them 
out  of  sight  and  enable  them  to  reach  the 
Mississippi,  so  that  the  Iroquois  found  the 
village  empty.  The  Ilinois  warriors  retired 
in  troops  on  the  hills,  and  even  gradually 
dispersed,  so  that  we,  seeing  ourselves  aban- 
doned by  our  hosts,  who  no  longer  appeared 
in  force,  and  left  alone,  exposed  to  the  fury 
of  a  savage  and  victorious  enemy,  were  not 
long  in  resolving  to  retreat.    The  reverend 

I20 


LA   SALLE 

father  Gabriel,  the  Sieur  de  Tonty,  the  few- 
French  who  were  with  us  and  myself  began 
our  march  on  the  i8th  of  September,  with- 
out provisions,  food  or  anything,  in  a 
wretched  bark  canoe,  which,  breaking  the 
next  day,  compelled  us  to  land  about  noon 
to  repair  it.  Father  Gabriel,  seeing  the  place 
of  our  landing  fit  for  walking  in  the  prairies 
and  hills  with  little  groves,  as  if  planted  by 
hand,  retired  there  to  say  his  breviary,  while 
we  were  working  at  the  canoe  all  the  rest 
of  the  day.  We  were  full  eight  leagues 
from  the  village,  ascending  the  river.  To- 
ward evening  I  went  to  look  for  the  Father, 
seeing  that  he  did  not  return ;  all  our  party 
did  the  same;  we  fired  repeatedly  to  direct 
him,  but  in  vain ;  and,  as  we  had  reason  to 
fear  the  Iroquois  during  the  night,  we 
crossed  to  the  other  side  of  the  river  and 
lit  up  fires,  which  were  also  useless.  The 
next  morning  at  daybreak  we  return  to  the 
same  side  where  we  were  the  day  before 
and  remained  till  noon,  making  all  possible 
search.  We  entered  the  wood,  where  we 
found  several  fresh  trails,  as  well  as  in  the 
prairie  on  the  bank  of  the  river.  We  fol- 
lowed them  one  by  one,  without  discovering 
anything,  except  that  M,  de  Tonty  had 
ground  to  believe  and  fear  that  some  hostile 
parties  were  in  ambush  to  cut  us  all  off,  for, 
121 


JOURNEYS    OF 

seeing  us  take  flight,  the  savages  had  imag- 
ined that  we  declared  for  the  IHnois.  I  in- 
sisted on  staying  to  wait  for  positive  tidings, 
but  the  Sieur  de  Tonty  forced  me  to  em- 
bark at  three  o'clock,  maintaining  that  the 
Father  had  been  killed  by  the  enemy,  or 
else  had  walked  on  along  the  bank,  so  that, 
following  it  constantly,  we  should  at  last 
infallibly  meet  him.  We  got,  however,  no 
tidings  of  him,  and  the  more  we  advanced 
the  more  this  affliction  unmanned  us,  and 
we  supported  this  remnant  of  a  languishing 
life  by  the  potatoes  and  garlick  and  other 
roots  that  we  found  by  scraping  the  ground 
with  our  fingers. 

We  afterward  learned  that  we  should 
have  expected  him  uselessly,  as  he  had  been 
killed  soon  after  landing.  The  Kikapous,  a 
little  nation  you  may  observe  on  the  west, 
quite  near  the  Winnebagoes,  had  sent  some 
of  their  youth  in  war  parties  against  the 
Iroquois  but  learning  that  the  latter  were 
attacking  the  Ilinois,  the  war  party  came 
after  them.  Three  braves  who  formed  a 
kind  of  advanced  guard,  having  met  the 
good  father  alone,  although  they  knew  that 
he  was  not  an  Iroquois,  killed  him  for  all 
that,  cast  his  body  into  a  hole,  and  carried 
off  even  his  breviary  and  diurnal,  which 
soon  after  came  to  the  hands  of  a  Jesuit 

122 


LA    SALLE 

father.  They  carried  off  the  scalp  of  this 
holy  man  and  vaunted  of  it  in  their  village 
as  an  Iroquois  scalp.  Thus  died  this  man  of 
God  by  the  hands  of  some  mad  youths.  We 
can  say  of  his  body  what  the  Scripture 
remarks  of  those  whom  the  sanguinary 
Herod  immolated  to  his  fury,  'Won  erat  qui 
sepileret."  Surely  he  deserved  a  better  fate, 
if,  indeed,  wc  can  desire  a  happier  one  be- 
fore God,  than  to  die  in  the  exercise  of  the 
apostolic  functions  by  the  hands  of  nations 
to  whom  we  are  sent  by  God.  He  had  not 
been  merely  a  religious  of  common  and  or- 
dinary virtue;  it  is  well  known  that  he  had 
in  Canada,  from  1670,  maintained  the  same 
sanctity  of  life  which  he  had  shown  in 
France  as  superior,  inferior  and  master  of 
novices.  He  had  for  a  long  time,  in  trans- 
ports of  fervor,  acknowledged  to  me  the 
profound  grief  which  he  felt  at  the  utter 
blindness  of  these  people,  and  that  he  longed 
to  be  an  anathema  for  their  salvation.  His 
death,  I  doubt  not,  has  been  precious  be- 
fore God,  and  will  one  day  have  its  effect  in 
the  vocation  of  these  people  to  the  faith, 
when  it  shall  please  the  Almighty  to  use  His 
great  mercy.® 

*  Of  this  estimable  missionary  we  know  little 

but  what  was  given  in  Hennepin.    He  was,  we  are 

assured,    the    last    scion   of   a   noble    Burgundian 

house,   who  not   only   renounced   his   inheritance 

123 


JOURNEYS    OF 

We  must  admit  that  this  good  old  man, 
quite  attenuated,  like  ourselves,  by  want  of 
everything,  would  not  have  been  able  to 
support  the  hardships  we  had  to  go  through 
after  that.  The  Sieur  de  Tonty  and  de 
Boisrondet  and  two  other  Frenchmen,  with 
myself,  had  still  eighty  leagues  to  make  to 
the  Pottawatomis.  Our  canoe  often  failed 
us  and  leaked  on  all  sides.  After  some  days 
we  had  to  leave  it  in  the  woods  and  make 

and  the  world  to  enroll  himself  among  the  lowly 
children  of  St.  Francis,  but  even  when  advanced 
in  life,  and  honored  with  the  first  dignities  of  his 
order,  sought  the  new  and  toilsome  mission  of 
Canada.  He  came  out  among  the  first  Recol- 
lect fathers  in  the  summer  of  1670,  and  on  the 
return  of  the  provincial,  F.  Allart,  to  France,  be- 
came commissary  and  first  superior  of  the  mis- 
sion, as  well  as  confessor  to  Frontenac.  He  re- 
stored such  missions  as  circumstances  enabled 
him  to  begin,  and  guided  his  little  flock  with  such 
moderation  and  skill  in  the  troublous  times  on 
which  he  had  fallen  that  he  acquired  the  venera- 
tion and  respect  of  all  parties.  His  moderation 
was  not,  indeed,  liked  by  all.  and  a  few  years  after 
F.  Eustace  Maupassant  was  sent  out  to  succeed 
him,  and  the  venerable  Ribourde  was  sent  as  mis- 
sionary to  Fort  Frontenac,  but  not  before  he  had 
witnessed  the  consecration  of  their  church  at  Que- 
bec. He  was  subsequently  joined  by  Buisset  and 
Hennepin,  and  consulting  his  zeal  rather  than  his 
age,  embarked  with  La  Salle.  The  date  of  hi» 
death  is  September  9,  1680;  he  was  then  in  the 
seventieth  year  of  his  age,  and  had  spent  more 
than  forty  in  the  religious  state,  and.  as  master 
of  novices,  trained  many  to  imitate  his  zeal  and 
virtues.  "This  holy  religious,"  with  Membre, 
who  was  to  perish  in  the  same  unknown  way,  are 
among  the  earliest  missionaries  of  Illinois. 
124 


LA   SALLE 

the  rest  of  our  journey  by  land,  walking 
barefooted  over  the  snow  and  ice.  I  made 
shoes  for  my  companions  and  myself  of  Fa- 
ther Gabriel's  cloak.  As  we  had  no  com- 
pass, we  frequently  got  lost,  and  found  our- 
selves in  the  evening  where  we  had  started 
in  the  morning,  with  no  other  food  than 
acorns  and  little  roots.  At  last,  after  fif- 
teen days'  march,  we  killed  a  deer,  which 
was  a  great  help  to  us.  The  Sieur  de  Bois- 
rondet  lost  us,  and  for  at  least  ten  days  we 
thought  him  dead.  As  he  had  a  tin  cup,  he 
melted  it  to  make  balls  for  his  gun,  which 
had  no  flint.  By  firing  it  with  a  coal  he 
killed  some  turkeys,  on  which  he  lived  dur- 
ing that  time.  At  last  we  fortunately  met 
at  the  Pottawatami  village,  where  their 
chief,  Onanghisse,  quite  well  known  among 
those  nations,  welcomed  us  most  cordially. 
He  used  to  say  that  he  knew  only  three 
great  captains — M.  de  Frontenac,  M.  de  la 
Salle  and  himself.  The  chief  harangued  all 
his  people,  who  contributed  to  funiish  us 
food.  Not  one  of  us  could  stand  for  weak- 
ness; we  were  all  like  skeletons,  the  Sieur 
de  Tonty  extremely  sick ;  but,  being  a  little 
recruited,  I  found  some  Indians  going  to 
the  bay  of  the  Fetid,  where  the  Jesuits  have 
a  house.  I  accordingly  set  out  for  it,  and 
cannot  express  the  hardships  I  had  to  un- 
125 


JOURNEYS    OF 

dergo  on  the  way.  The  Sieur  de  Tonty 
followed  us  soon  after  with  the  rest.  We 
cannot  sufficiently  acknowledge  the  charity 
these  good  fathers  displayed  toward  us  until 
the  thaws  began,  when  we  set  out  with 
Father  Enjalran  in  a  canoe  for  Missili- 
makinak,  hoping  to  find  news  there  from 
Canada. 

From  the  Ilinois  we  had  always  followed 
the  route  by  the  north ;  had  God  permitted 
us  to  take  that  by  the  south  of  Lake  Dau- 
phin we  should  have  met  the  Sieur  de  la 
Salle,  who  was  coming  with  well-furnished 
canoes  from  Fort  Frontenac,  and  had  gone 
by  the  south  to  the  Ilinois,  where  he  ex- 
pected to  find  us  with  all  his  people  in  good 
order,  as  he  had  left  us  when  he  started  in 
the  preceding  year  (March  2d,  1680).' 

This  he  told  us  himself  when  he  arrived 
at  Missilimakinak,  about  the  middle  of 
June  [1618],  when  he  found  us  a  little  re- 
stored from  our  sufferings.  I  leave  you  to 
conceive  our  mutual  joy,  damped  though 
it  was  by  the  narrative  he  made  us  of  all 
his  misfortunes  and  by  that  we  made  him  of 
our  tragical  adventures.  He  told  us  that 
after  our  departure  from  Fort  Frontenac 
they  had  excited  his  creditors  before  the 

['  For  La  Salle's  movements  cf.  Margry  I.,  514- 
524;  II.,  I37-] 

126 


LA   SALLE 

time  to  seize  his  property  and  all  his  ef- 
fects, on  a  rumor  which  had  been  spread 
that  he  had  been  drowned  with  all  his  peo- 
ple. He  told  us  that  his  ship,  the  Griffin, 
had  perished  in  the  lakes  a  few  days  after 
leaving  the  bay  of  the  Fetid ;  that  the  cap- 
tain, sailors  and  more  than  ten  thousand 
crowns  in  merchandise  had  been  lost  and 
never  heard  of.  He  had  sent  little  fleets  of 
canoes  to  trade  right  and  left  on  Lake  Fron- 
tenac ;  but  these  wretches,  he  told  us,  had 
profited  by  the  principal  and  the  trade,  with- 
out his  being  able  to  obtain  any  justice  from 
those  who  should  have  rendered  it,  notwith- 
standing all  the  efforts  made  by  M.  de  Fron- 
tenac,  the  governor,  in  his  favor;  that,  to 
complete  his  misfortunes,  a  vessel  coming 
from  France  with  a  cargo  for  his  account, 
amounting  to  twenty-two  thousand  livres, 
had  been  wrecked  on  St.  Peter's  Islands,  in 
the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence;  that  canoes  as- 
cending from  Montreal  to  Fort  Frontenac 
loaded  with  goods  had  been  lost  in  the  rap- 
ids ;  in  a  word,  that,  except  the  Count  de 
Frontenac,  all  Canada  seemed  in  league 
against  his  undertaking.  The  men  he  had 
brought  from  France  had  been  seduced 
from  him ;  some  had  run  off  with  his  goods 
to  New  York;  and  as  regarded  the  Cana- 
dians who  had  joined  him,  means  had  been 
127 


JOURNEYS   OF 

found  to  work  upon  them  and  draw  them 
from  his  interests. 

Although  he  had  left  Fort  Frontenac  in 
his  bark  on  the  23d  of  July,  1680,  he  was 
detained  on  the  lake  by  head  winds,  so  that 
he  could  not  reach  the  straits  of  Lake  de 
Conty  till  the  close  of  August.  All  seemed 
to  oppose  his  undertaking.  Embarking  in  the 
beginning  of  September  on  Lake  de  Conty, 
he  had  been  detained  with  M.  de  la  For- 
rest, his  lieutenant,  and  all  his  men  at  Mis- 
silimakinak,  being  unable  to  obtain  corn  for 
goods  or  money ;  but  at  last,  as  it  was  abso- 
lutely necessary,  he  was  obliged,  after  three 
weeks'  stay,  to  buy  some  for  liquor,  and  in 
one  day  he  got  sixty  sacks. 

He  left  there  the  4th  of  October,  and  on 
the  28th  [24th]  of  November  reached  the 
Myamis'  River,  where  he  left  a  ship-carpen- 
ter and  some  of  his  people ;  then,  pushing 
on,  reached  the  Ilinois  on  the  first  of  De- 
cember. There  he  was  greatly  surprised  to 
find  their  great  village  burnt  and  empty. 
The  rest  of  the  time  was  spent  in  a  journey 
to  the  Myamis'  River,  where  he  went  to  join 
his  men  forty  leagues  from  the  Ilinois. 
Thence  he  passed  to  different  tribes,  among 
others  to  an  Outagamis  village,  where  he 
found  some  Ilinois,  who  related  to  him  the 
unhappy  occurrences  of  the  preceding  year. 
128 


LA   SALLE 

He  learned,  moreover,  that  after  our 
flight  and  departure  from  the  Ilinois  their 
warriors  had  returned  from  the  Nadoues- 
siouz,  where  they  had  been  at  war,  and  that 
there  had  been  several  engagements,  with 
equal  loss  on  both  sides,  and  that  at  last,  of 
the  seventeen  Ilinois  villages,  the  greater 
part  had  retired  beyond  the  River  Colbert, 
among  the  Ozages,  two  hundred  leagues 
from  their  country,  where,  too,  a  part  of  the 
Iroquois  had  pursued  themi. 

At  the  same  time  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle 
intrigued  with  the  Outagami  chiefs,  whom 
he  drew  into  his  interests  and  those  of  the 
Ilinois ;  thence  he  passed  to  the  Myamis, 
whom  he  induced  by  presents  and  argu- 
ments to  leave  the  Iroquois  and  join  the 
Ilinois ;  he  sent  two  of  his  men  and  two 
Abenaquis  to  announce  this  to  the  Illinois 
and  prevent  new  acts  of  hostility  and  to  re- 
call the  dispersed  tribes.  To  strengthen 
both  more,  he  sent  others  with  presents  to 
the  Shawness  to  invite  them  to  come  and 
join  the  Illinois  against  the  Iroquois,  who 
carried  their  wars  even  to  them.  All  this 
had  succeeded  when  M.  de  la  Salle  left  on 
the  22d  of  May,  1681,  to  return  to  Missili- 
makinak,  where  he  expected  to  find  us.  If 
we  wish  to  settle  in  these  parts  and  see  the 
faith  make  any  progress  it  is  absolutely  nec- 
129 


JOURNEYS    OF 

essary  to  maintain  peace  and  union  among 
all  these  tribes,  as  well  as  among  others 
more  remote,  against  the  common  enemy — 
that  is,  the  Iroquois — who  never  makes  a 
real  peace  with  any  whom  he  has  once 
beaten,  or  whom  he  hopes  to  overcome  by 
the  divisions  which  he  artfully  excites;  so 
that  we  should  be  daily  exposed  to  routs 
like  that  to  which  we  were  subjected  last 
year.  M.  de  la  Salle,  convinced  of  this  nec- 
essity, has,  since  our  return,  purchased  the 
whole  Illinois  ^**  country,  and  has  given  can- 
tons to  the  Shawnees,  who  there  colonize  in 
large  families. 

The  Sieur  de  la  Salle  related  to  us  all  his 
hardships  and  voyages,  as  well  as  all  his 
misfortunes,  and  learned  from  us  as  many 
regarding  him;  yet  never  did  I  remark  in 
him  the  least  alteration,  always  maintaining 
his  ordinary  coolness  and  self-possession. 
Any  one  but  him  would  have  renounced  and 
abandoned  the  enterprise;  but,  far  from 
that,  by  a  firmness  of  mind  and  an  almost 
unequaled  constancy,  I  saw  him  more  reso- 
lute than  ever  to  continue  his  work  and  to 
carry  out  his  discovery.  We  accordingly 
left  for  Fort  Frontenac  with  his  whole  party 
to  adopt  new  measures  to  resume  and  com- 

"  See  his  second  patent  in  the  Appendix  [Vol. 
II.]. 

130 


LA    SALLE 

plete  our  course,  with  the  bJp  of  heaven, 
in  which  we  put  all  our  trust. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

NARRATIVE  OF  LA  SALLE's  VOYAGE  DOWN  THE 
MISSISSIPPI,  BY  FATHER  ZENOBIUS 
MEMBRE,   RECOLLECT. 

M.  DE  LA  Salle,  having  arrived  safely  at 
the  Miamies  on  the  3d  of  November/  1681, 
began  with  his  ordinary  activity  and  vast 
mind  to  make  all  preparations  for  his  de- 
parture. He  selected  twenty-three  French- 
men and  eighteen  Mohegans  and  Abnakis,' 

[^  Others  give  Dec.  16  and  19.  Cf.  Margry  I., 
593;  II.,  20.] 

^  The  Mohegans,  whose  name  is  generally  trans- 
latea  by  old  French  writers,  who  call  them 
*'Lonps,"  or  "Wolves,"  were  hereditary  enemies  of 
the  Iroquois.  They  were  known  to  the  French  as 
early  as  the  time  of  Champlain,  who  calls  them 
"Mayganathicoise."  It  is  needless  here  to  follow 
the  varieties  in  orthography  which  it  underwent. 
The  Iroquois  called  them  "Agotsagenens"  (F. 
Jogues'  MS.).  Their  relations  with  their  Euro- 
pean neighbors  seem  always  to  have  been  friendly, 
and  they  never  apparentlj-  warred  on  either  Eng- 
lish, Dutch  or  French,  although  their  position  be- 
tween the  Hudson  and  Connecticut  exposed  them 
to  frequent  occasions  of  trouble.  Though  never 
really  the  allies  of  the  French,  the  hostility  of  the 
Iroquois  to  both  brought  them  in  contact,  so  that 
Mohegans  frequently  figure  in  small  parties  in 
French  campaigns. 

The  Abnakis  were  a  people  of  Maine,  and,  like 


JOURNEYS    OF 

all  inured  to  war.  The  latter  insisted  on 
taking  along  ten  of  their  women  to  cook 
for  them,  as  their  custom  is  while  they  were 
fishing  or  hunting.  These  women  had  three 
children,  so  that  the  whole  party  consisted 
of  but  fifty-four  persons,  including  the  Sieur 
de  Tonty  and  the  Sieur  Dautray,  son  of  the 
late  Sieur  Bourdon,  procurator-general  of' 
Quebec. 

On  the  2 1st  of  December  I  embarked 
with  the  Sieur  de  Tonty  and  a  part  of  our 
people  on  Lake  Dauphin  (Michigan),  to  go 
toward  the  divine  river,  called  by  the  In- 
dians Checagou,  in  order  to  make  necessary 
arrangements  for  our  voyage.  The  Sieur 
de  la  Salle  joined  us  there  with  the  rest  of 
his  troop  on  the  4th  of  January,  1682,  and 
found  tliat  Tonty  had  had  sleighs  made  to 
put  all  on  and  carry  it  over  the  Chicago, 
which  was  frozen ;  for,  though  the  winter 
in  these  parts  is  only  two  months  long,  it 
is,  notwithstanding,  very  severe. 

the  Mohegans.  of  the  Algonquin  family.  They 
were  originally  allies  of  the  English,  who  called 
them  "Taranteens,"  but  the  unwise  policy  of  the 
New  England  colonies  compelled  them  to  join  the 
French.  Their  conversion  to  the  Catholic  re- 
ligion, which  they  still  profess,  tended  still  more 
to  embitter  the  colonies  against  them,  and  long 
and  bloody  wars  resulted,  in  which  the  Abnakis, 
forsaken  by  the  French,  were  at  last  humbled. 
They  now  form  about  five  villages  in  Maine  and 
Canada. 

132 


LA   SALLE 

We  had  to  make  a  portage  to  enter  the 
IHnois  River,  which  we  found  also  frozen; 
we  made  it  on  the  27th  of  the  same  month, 
and,  dragging  our  canoes,  baggage  and  pro- 
visions about  eighty  leagues  on  the  River 
Seignelay  (Ilinois),  which  runs  into  the 
River  Colbert  (Mississippi),  we  traversed 
the  great  Ilinois  town  without  finding  any 
one  there,  the  Indians  having  gone  to  win- 
ter thirty  leagues  lower  down  on  Lake  Pi- 
miteoui  (Peoria),  where  Fort  Crevecoeur 
stands.  We  found  it  in  a  good  state,  and 
La  Salle  left  his  orders  here.  As  from  this 
spot  navigation  is  open  at  all  seasons  and 
free  from  ice,  we  embarked  in  our  canoes, 
and  on  the  6th  of  February  reached  the 
mouth  of  the  River  Seignelay,  at  38°  north. 
The  floating  ice  on  the  River  Colbert  ^  at 
this  place  kept  us  till  the  13th  of  the  same 
month,  when  we  set  out,  and  six  leagues 
lower  down  found  the  Ozage  (Missouri) 
River,  coming  from  the  west.  It  is  full  as 
large  as  the  River  Colbert,  into  which  it 
empties,  troubling  it  so  that  from  the  mouth 
of  the  Ozage  the  water  is  hardly  drinkable. 
The  Indians  assure  us  that  this  river  is 
formed  by  many  others,  and  that  they  as- 
cend it  for  ten  or  twelve  days  to  a  mountain 
where  it  rises ;  that  beyond  this  mountain 

['  Named  at  this  time.    Cf.  Margry  I.,  595.] 


JOURNEYS   OF 

is"  the  sea,  where  they  see  great  ships ;  that 
on  the  river  are  a  great  number  of  large 
villages,  of  many  different  nations ;  that 
there  are  arable  and  prairie  lands  and  abun- 
dance of  cattle  and  beaver.  Alhough  this 
river  is  very  large,  the  Colbert  does  not 
seem  augmented  by  it ;  but  it  pours  in  so 
much  mud  that  from  its  mouth  the  water 
of  the  great  river,  whose  bed  is  also  slimy, 
is  more  like  clear  mud  than  river  water, 
without  changing  at  all  till  it  reaches  the 
sea,  a  distance  of  more  than  three  hundred 
leagues,  although  it  receives  seven  large 
rivers,  the  water  of  which  is  very  beautiful, 
and  which  are  almost  as  large  as  the  Mis- 
sissippi. 

On  the  14th,  six  leagues  further,  we 
found  on  the  east  the  village  of  the  Tama- 
roas,*  who  had  gone  to  the  chase ;  we  left 
there  marks  of  our  peaceful  coming  and 
signs  of  our  route,  according  to  practice  in 
such  voyages.  We  went  slowly,  because 
we  were  obliged  to  hunt  and  fish  almost 
daily,  not  having  been  able  to  bring  any 
provisions  but  Indian  corn. 

Forty  leagues  from  Tamaroa  is  the  River 
Oiiabache  (Ohio),  where  we  stopped.  From 
the  mouth  of  this  river  you  must  advance 

*The  Tamaroas,  or  Maroas,  were  an  Illinois 
tribe,  who  long  had  their  village  in  this  quarter. 

134 


LA    SALLE 

forty-two  leagues  without  stopping,  because 
the  banks  are  low  and  marshy,  and  full  of 
thick  foam,  rushes  and  walnut  trees. 

On  the  24th  [or  26th]  those  whom  we 
sent  to  hunt  all  returned  but  Peter  Prud- 
homme ;  the  rest  reported  that  they  had  seen 
an  Indian  trail,  which  made  us  suppose  our 
Frenchman  killed  or  taken.  This  induced 
the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  to  throw  up  a  fort  and 
intrenchment  and  to  put  some  French  and 
Indians  on  the  trail.  None  relaxed  their 
efforts  till  the  first  of  March,  when  Gabriel 
Minime  and  two  Mohegans  took  two  of  five 
Indians  whom  they  discovered.  They  said 
that  they  belonged  to  the  Sicacha  (Chicka- 
saw) nation  and  that  their  village  was  a 
day  and  a  half  off.  After  showing  them 
every  kindness  I  set  out  with  the  Sieur  de 
la  Salle  and  half  our  party  to  go  there,  in 
hopes  of  learning  some  news  of  Prud- 
homme;  but,  after  having  traveled  the  dis- 
tance stated,  we  showed  the  Indians  that 
v^^e  were  displeased  with  their  duplicity ; 
then  they  told  us  frankly  that  we  were  still 
three  days  off.  (These  Indians  generally 
count  ten  or  twelve  leagues  to  a  day.)  We 
returned  to  the  camp,  and  one  of  the  Indians 
having  offered  to  remain  while  the  other 
carried  the  news  to  the  village.  La  Salle 
gave  him  some  goods  and  he  set  out,  after 
135 


JOURNEYS   OF 

giving  us  to  understand  that  we  should  meet 
their  nation  on  the  bank  of  the  river  as  we 
descended. 

At  last  Prudhomme,  who  had  been  lost, 
was  found  on  the  ninth  day  and  brought 
back  to  the  fort,  so  that  we  set  out  the  next 
day,  which  was  foggy.  Having  sailed  forty 
leagues  till  the  third  [or  13th]  of  March, 
we  heard  drums  beating  and  sasocoiiest 
(war-cries)  on  our  right.  Perceiving  that 
it  was  an  Akansa  village,  the  Sieur  de  la 
Salle  immediately  passed  over  to  the  other 
side  with  all  his  force,  and  in  less  than  an 
hour  threw  up  a  retrenched  redoubt  on  a 
ix)int,  with  palisades,  and  felled  trees,  to 
prevent  a  surprise  and  give  the  Indians  time 
to  recover  confidence.  He  then  made  some 
of  his  party  advance  on  the  bank  of  the  river 
and  invite  the  Indians  to  come  to  us.  The 
chiefs  sent  a  periagua  (these  are  large 
wooden  canoes,  made  of  a  hollow  tree,  like 
little  bateaux),  which  came  within  gun- 
shot. We  offered  them  the  calumet  of 
peace,  and  two  Indians,  advancing,  by  signs 
invited  the  French  to  come  to  them.  On 
this  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  sent  a  Frenchman 
and  two  Abnakis,  who  were  received  and 
regaled  with  many  tokens  of  friendship. 
Six  of  the  principal  men  brought  him  back 
in  the  same  periagua,  and  came  into  the  re- 
136 


LA    SALLE 

doubt,  where  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  made 
them  presents  of  tobacco  and  some  goods. 
On  their  side  they  gave  us  some  slaves,  and 
the  most  important  chief  invited  us  to  go 
to  the  village  to  refresh  ourselves,  which 
we  readily  did. 

All  those  of  the  village,  except  the 
women,  who  had  at  first  taken  flight,  came 
to  the  bank  of  the  river  to  receive  us.  Here 
they  built  us  cabins,  brought  us  wood  to 
burn  and  provisions  in  abundance.  For 
three  days  they  feasted  us  constantly.  The 
women  now  returned,  brought  us  Indian 
corn,  beans,  flour  and  various  kinds  of 
fruits ;  and  we,  in  return,  made  them  other 
little  presents,  which  they  admired  greatly. 

These  Indians  do  not  resemble  those  at 
the  north,  who  are  all  sad  and  severe  in 
their  temper ;  these  are  far  better  made,  hon- 
est, liberal  and  gay.  Even  the  young  are 
so  modest  that,  though  they  had  a  great  de- 
side  to  see  La  Salle,  they  kept  quietly  at 
the  doors,  not  daring  to  come  in. 

We  saw  great  numbers  of  domestic  fowls, 
flocks  of  turkeys,  tame  bustards,  many  kinds 
of  fruits,  peaches  already  formed  on  the 
trees,  although  it  was  only  the  beginning 
of  March. 

On  the  14th  of  the  same  month  the  Sieur 
de  la  Salle  took  possession  of  this  country 
137 


JOURNEYS    OF 

with  great  ceremony.  He  planted  a  cross 
and  set  up  tiie  king's  arms,  at  which  the  In- 
dians showed  a  great  joy.'^  You  can  talk 
much  to  Indiians  by  signs,  and  those  with 
us  managed  to  make  themselves  a  little  un- 
derslcod  in  their  language.  I  took  occasion 
to  explain  something  of  the  truth  of  God 
L.nd  the  mysteries  of  our  redemption,  of 
which  they  saw  the  arms.  During  this  time 
they  showed  that  they  relished  what  I  said 
by  raising  their  eyes  to  heaven  and  kneeling 
as  if  to  adore.  We  also  saw  them  rub  their 
hands  over  their  bodies  after  rubbing  them 
over  the  cross.  In  fact,  on  our  return  from 
the  sea  we  found  that  they  had  surrounded 
the  cross  with  a  palisade.  They  finally  gave 
us  provisions  and  men  to  conduct  us  and 
serve  as  interpreters  with  the  Taensa,  their 
allies,  who  are  eighty  leagues  distant  from 
their  village. 

On  the  17th  we  contirucd  our  route,  and 
six  leagues  lower  down  we  found  another 
village  of  the  samf^  Akansa  nation,  and  then 
another  three  leagues  lower,  the  people  of 
which  were  of  the  same  kind  and  received 
us  most  hospitably.*'     We  gave  them  pres- 

['Cf.  Margrv  II.,  181-185.] 

•Amid  the  conflict  of  names  to  be  found  in 
early  narratives,  it  is  a  relief  to  meet  so  much 
uniformity  relative  to  the  Akansas.  It  is  not, 
indeed,  easy  to  recognize  them  in  the  Quigata, 
Quipana,  Pacaha  or  Cayas  of  De  Soto's  expedi- 

138 


LA    SALLE 

ents  and  tokens  of  our  coming  in  peace  and 
friendship. 

On  the  22d  [or  20Lh]  we  reached  the 
Taensa,  who  dwell  around  a  little  lal<e 
formed  in  the  land  by  the  River  Mississippi. 
They  have  eight  villages.  The  wails  of  their 
houses  are  made  of  earth  mixed  with  straw ; 
the  roof  is  of  canes,  which  fonn  a  dome 
adorned  with  paintings ;  they  have  wooden 
beds  and  much  other  furniture,  and  even 
ornaments  in  their  temples,  where  they  in- 

tion.  Marquette,  in  his  journal,  first  gives  the 
name  "Akamsea,"  which  has  remaiiiec)  to  this 
day  on  his  map.  He  gives  near  them  the  Papi- 
kaha  and  Atotchasi.  Father  Membre  here  men- 
tions three  towns  of  the  tribe,  but  does  not  name 
them.  Tonty  does,  and  has  on  the  Mississippi  the 
Kappas,  and  inland  the  Toyengan,  or  Tongenga, 
the  Toriman,  and  the  Osotonoy,  or  Assotoue. 
The  latter  is,  indeed,  his  post,  but  old  deeds  show 
a  village  lay  opposite,  which  probably  gave  its 
name.  On  the  next  expedition  Father  Anastasius 
writes  Kappa,  Doginga,  Toriman  and  Osotteoez, 
which  Joutel  repeats,  changing  Doginga  to  Ton- 
genga, and  Osotteoez  to  Otsotchove.  In  1721 
Father  Charlevoix  writes  them  the  Kappas,  Tore- 
mans,  Topingas  and  Sothouis,  adding  another 
tribe,  the  Ouyapes,  though  there  were  still  but 
four  villages.  In  1729  Father  Poisson  places  them 
all  on  the  Arkansas — the  Tourimans  and  Ton- 
gingas  nine  leagues  from  the  mouth  by  the  lower 
branch,  the  Sauthouis  three  leagues  further,  and 
the  Kappas  still  higher  up. 

The  only  material  difference  is  in  the  Atot- 
chasi, Otsotchove,  Osotteoez,  Ossotonoy,  Asso- 
toue, or  Sothouis,  in  which,  however,  there  is 
similarity  enough  to  establish  identity.  They  call 
themselves  Oguapas,  and  never  use  the  term  "Ar- 
kansas."—  (Nuttal.) 


JOURNEYS   OF 

ter  the  bones  of  their  chiefs.  They  are 
dressed  in  white  blankets  made  of  the  bark 
of  a  tree,  which  they  spin ;  their  chief  is  ab- 
solute, and  disposes  of  all  without  consult- 
ing anybody.  He  is  attended  by  slaves,  as 
are  all  his  family.  Food  is  brought  him 
outside  his  cabin ;  drink  is  given  him  in  a 
particular  cup,  with  much  neatness.  His 
wives  and  children  are  similarly  treated,  and 
the  other  Taensa  address  him  with  respect 
and  ceremony. 

The  Sieur  de  la  Salle,  being  fatigued  and 
unable  to  go  into  the  town,  sent  in  the  Sieur 
de  Tonty  and  myself  with  presents.  The 
chief  of  this  nation,  not  content  with  send- 
ing him  provisions  and  other  presents, 
wished  also  to  see  him,  and,  accordingly, 
two  hours  before  the  time  a  master  of  cere- 
monies came,  followed  by  six  men  ;  he  made 
them  clear  the  way  he  was  to  pass,  prepare 
a  place  and  cover  it  with  a  delicately  worked 
cane-mat.  The  chief,  who  came  some  time 
after,  was  dressed  in  a  fine  white  cloth  or 
blanket.  He  was  preceded  by  two  men  car- 
rying fans  of  white  feathers.  A  third  car- 
ried a  copper  plate  and  a  round  one  of  the 
same  metal,  both  highly  polished.  He  main- 
tained a  very  grave  demeanor  during  this 
visit,  which  was,  however,  full  of  confidence 
and  marks  of  friendship. 
140 


LA   SALLE 

The  whole  country  is  covered  with  palm- 
trees,  laurels  of  two  kinds,  plums,  peaches, 
mulberry,  apple,  and  pear  trees  of  every 
kind.  There  are  also  five  or  six  kinds  of 
nut-trees,  some  of  which  bear  nuts  of  ex- 
traordinary size.  They  also  gave  us  several 
kinds  of  dried  fruit  to  taste ;  we  found  them 
large  and  good.  They  have  also  many  other 
kinds  of  fruit-trees  which  I  never  saw  in 
Europe,  but  the  season  was  too  early  to  al- 
low us  to  see  the  fruit.  We  observed  vines 
already  out  of  blossom.  The  mind  and  char- 
acter of  this  people  appeared  on  the  whole 
docile  and  manageable,  and  even  capable  of 
reason.  I  made  them  understand  all  I 
wished  about  our  mysteries.  They  conceived 
pretty  well  the  necessity  of  a  God,  the 
creator  and  director  of  all,  but  attribute  this 
divinity  to  the  sun.  Religion  may  be  greatly 
advanced  among  them,  as  well  as  among 
the  Akansas,  both  these  nations  being  half- 
civilized. 

Our  guides  would  go  no  further,  for  fear 
of  falling  into  the  hands  of  their  enemies, 
for  the  people  on  one  shore  are  generally 
enemies  of  those  on  the  other.  There  are 
forty  villages  on  the  east  and  thirty-four  on 
the  west,  of  all  of  which  we  were  told  the 
names. 

The  26th  of  March  resuming'  our  course, 
141 


JOURNEYS    OF 

we  perceived,  twelve  leagues  lower  down, 
a  periagua  or  wooden  canoe,  to  which  the 
Sieur  de  Tonty  gave  chase,  till,  approaching 
the  shore,  we  perceived  a  great  number  of 
Indians.  The  Sieur  de  la  Salle,  with  his 
usual  precaution,  turned  to  the  opposite 
banks,  and  then  sent  the  calumet  of  peace 
by  the  Sieur  de  Tonty.  Some  of  the  chief 
men  crossed  the  river  to  come  to  us  as  good 
friends.  They  were  fishermen  of  the  Nachie 
tribe  (Natchez),  enemies  of  the  Taensa.  Al- 
though their  village  lay  three  leagues  in- 
land, the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  did  not  hesitate 
to  go  there  with  a  part  of  our  force.  We 
slept  there,  and  received  as  kindly  a  wel- 
come as  we  could  expect ;  the  Sieur  de  la 
Salle,  whose  ver>'  air,  engaging  manners 
and  skillful  mind  command  alike  love  and 
respect,  so  impressed  the  heart  of  these  In- 
dians that  they  did  not  know  how  to  treat 
us  well  enough.  They  would  gladly  have 
kept  us  with  them,  and  even,  in  sign  of  their 
esteem,  that  night  informed  the  Koroa,'^ 
their  ally,  whose  chief  and  head  men  came 
the  next  day  to  the  village,  where  they  paid 
their  obeisance  to  the  king  of  the  French 
in  the  person  of  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle,  who 

''Marquette's  map  mentions  this  tribe  as  lying 
inland,  on  the  western  side.     He  writes  it  "Ako- 
roa."     [Iberville  later  "Coloa."] 
142 


Lu\   SALLE 

was  well  able  to  exalt  in  every  quarter  the 
power  and  glory  of  his  nation. 

After  having  planted  the  king's  arms  un- 
der the  cross  and  made  presents  to  the 
Nachie,  we  returned  to  the  camp  the  next 
day  with  the  head  men  of  the  town  and  the 
Koroa  chief,  who  accompanied  us  to  his 
village,  situated  ten  leagues  below,  on  a 
beautiful  eminence,  surrounded  on  one  side 
by  fine  corn  fields  and  on  the  other  by  beau- 
tiful prairies.  This  chief  presented  the 
Sieur  de  la  Salle  with  a  calumet  and  feasted 
him  and  all  his  party.  We  here,  as  else- 
where, made  presents  in  return.  They  told 
us  that  we  had  still  ten  days  to  sail  to  the 
sea. 

The  Sicacha  (Chickasaw),  whom  we  had 
brought  thus  far,  obtained  leave  to  remain 
in  the  village,  which  we  left  on  Easter  Sun- 
day, the  29th  of  March,  after  having  cele- 
brated the  divine  mysteries  for  the  French 
and  fulfilled  the  duties  of  good  Christians. 
For  our  Indians,  though  of  the  most  ad- 
vanced and  best  instructed,  were  not  yet 
capable. 

About  six  leagues  below  the  river  divides 
into  two  arms  or  channels,  forming  a  great 
island,  which  must  be  more  than  sixty 
leagues  long.*    We  followed  the  channel  on 

[*  This  was  a  mistake,  but  the  maps  of  that 
143 


JOURNEYS   OF 

the  right,  akhough  we  had  intended  to  take 
the  other,  but  passed  it  in  a  fog  without  see- 
ing it.  We  had  a  guide  with  us,  who  pointed 
it  out  by  signs ;  but,  his  canoe  being  then, 
behind,  those  in  it  neglected  when  the 
Indian  told  them  to  overtake  us,  for 
we  were  considerably  ahead.  We  were  in- 
formed that  on  the  other  channel  there 
were  ten  different  nations,  numerous  and 
well-disposed. 

On  the  second  of  April,  after  having 
sailed  forty  [or  eighty]  leagues,  we  per- 
ceived some  fishermen  on  the  bank  of  the 
river ;  they  took  flight,  and  we  imme- 
diately after  heard  sasacoiiest — that  is,  war- 
cries  and  beating  of  drums.  It  was  the 
Quinipissa  nation.  Four  Frenchmen  were 
sent  to  offer  them  the  calumet  of  peace,  with 
orders  not  to  fire ;  but  they  had  to  return  in 
hot  haste,  because  the  Indians  let  fly  a 
shower  of  arrows  at  them.  Four  of  our 
Mohegans,  who  went  soon  after,  met  no 
better  welcome.  This  obliged  the  Sieur  de 
la  Salle  to  continue  his  route,  till  two 
leagues  lower  down  we  entered  a  village 
of  the  Tangiboa,^  which  had  been  re- 
cently sacked   and   plundered ;    we    found 

time  represented  the  Mississippi  as  two  rivers  con- 
nected  by   a   channel.      Cf.   Estab't  of  the   Faith 
(Shea,  ed")  II.,  175,  note.] 
*  Called  in  act  of  possession  "Mahcouala." 
144 


LA    SALLE 

there  three  cabins  full  of  human  bodies  dead 
for  fifteen  or  sixteen  days. 

At  last,  after  a  navigation  of  about  forty 
leagues,  we  arrived,  on  the  sixth  of  April, 
at  a  point  where  the  river  divides  into  three 
channels.  The  Sieur  de  la  Salle  divided 
his  party  the  next  day  into  three  bands  to  go 
and  explore  them.  He  took  the  western, 
the  Sieur  Dautray  the  southern,  the  Sieur 
Tonty,  whom  I  accompanied,  the  middle 
one.  These  three  channels  are  beautiful 
and  deep.  The  water  is  brackish;  after  ad- 
vancing two  leagues  it  became  perfectly 
salt,  and,  advancing  on,  we  discovered  the 
open  sea,  so  that  on  the  ninth  of  April,  with 
all  possible  solemnity,  we  performed  the 
ceremony  of  planting  the  cross  and  raising 
the  arms  of  France.  After  we  had  chanted 
the  hymn  of  the  church,  "Vexilla  Regis," 
and  the  "Te  Deum,"  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle, 
in  the  name  of  his  majesty,  took  possession 
of  that  river,  of  all  rivers  that  enter  it  and 
of  all  the  country  watered  by  them.  An 
authentic  act  was  drawn  up,  signed  by  all 
of  us  there,  and,  amid  a  volley  from  all  our 
muskets,  a  leaden  plate  subscribed  with  the 
arms  of  France  and  the  names  of  those  who 
had  just  made  the  discovery  was  deposited 
in  the  earth. ^°    The  Sieur  de  la  Salle,  who 

^°  See  De  la  Salle's  proces  verbal  of  the  taking 


JOURNEYS    OF 

always  caTied  an  astrolabe,  took  the  lati- 
tude of  the  mouth.  Although  he  kept  to 
himself  the  exact  point,  we  have  learned 
that  the  river  falls  into  the  Gulf  of  Mexico, 
between  27°  and  28°  north,  and,  as  is 
thought,  at  the  point  where  maps  lay  down 
the  Rio  Escondido.  This  mouth  is  about 
thirty  leagues  distant  from  the  Rio  Bravo 
(Rio  Grande),  sixty  from  the  Rio  de  Pal- 
mas,  and  ninety  or  a  hundred  leagues  from 
the  River  Panuco  (Tampico),  where  the 
nearest  Spanish  post  on  the  coast  is  situated. 
We  reckoned  that  Espiritu  Santo  Bay  (Ap- 
palachee  Bay)  lay  northeast  of  the  mouth. 
From  the  Ilinois  River  we  always  went 
south  or  southwest ;  the  river  winds  a  little, 
preserves  to  the  sea  its  breadth  of  about  a 
quarter  of  a  league,  is  everywhere  very 
deep,  without  banks  or  any  obstacle  to  navi- 
gation, although  the  contrary  has  been  pub- 
lished." This  river  is  reckoned  eight  hun- 
dred leagues  long ;  we  traveled  at  least  three 
hundred  and  fifty  from  the  mouth  of  the 
River  Seignelay. 

We  were  out  of  provisions,  and  found 

possession  of  Louisiana,  in  the  Hist.  Coll.  of  Lou- 
isiana, Vol.  I.,  p.  45.     [Also  Vol.  I.,  Chap.  VII.] 

"  We  do  not  know  to  what  Father  Meinhre  re- 
fers. Marquette's  work  makes  no  such  assertion 
of  the  Mississippi.  Hennepin,  indeed,  says  that 
an  Illinois  had  so  stated  before  La  Salle  went 
down. — Description  de  la  Louisiane,  p.  177. 
146 


LA   SALLE 

only  some  dried  meat  at  the  mouth,  which 
we  took  to  appease  our  hunger ;  but  soon 
after  perceiving  it  to  be  human  flesh,  we  left 
the  rest  to  our  Indians.  It  was  very  good 
and  delicate.  At  last,  on  the  tenth  of  April, 
we  began  to  remount  the  river,  living  only 
on  potatoes  and  crocodiles  (alligators).  The 
country  is  so  bordered  with  canes  and  so 
low  in  this  part  that  we  could  not  hunt, 
without  a  long  halt.  On  the  twelfth  we  slept 
at  the  village  of  the  Tangibao,  and  as  the 
Sieur  de  la  Salle  wished  to  have  com,  will- 
ingly or  by  force  .  .  .  Our  Abnakis  per- 
ceived, on  the  thirteenth,  as  we  advanced, 
a  great  smoke  near.  We  thought  that  this 
might  be  the  Quinipissa,  who  had  fired  on 
us  some  days  before;  those  whom  we  sent 
out  to  reconnoitre  brought  in  four  women 
of  the  nation  on  the  morning  of  the  four- 
teenth, and  we  went  and  encamped  opposite 
the  village.  After  dinner  some  periaguas 
came  toward  us  to  brave  us,  but  the  Sieur 
de  la  Salle  having  advanced  in  person  with 
the  calumet  of  peace,  on  their  refusal  to  re- 
ceive it  a  gun  was  fired,  which  terrified 
these  savages,  who  had  never  seen  firearms. 
They  called  it  thunder,  not  understanding 
how  a  wooden  stick  could  vomit  fire  and 
kill  people  so  far  ofif  without  touching  them. 
This  obliged  the  Indians  to  take  flight,  al- 


JOURNEYS   OF 

though  in  great  force,  armed  in  their  man- 
ner. At  last  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  followed 
them  to  the  other  side  and  put  one  woman 
on  the  shore,  with  a  present  of  axes,  knives 
and  beads,  giving  her  to  understand  that  the 
other  three  should  follow  soon  if  she 
brought  some  Indian  corn.  The  next  day 
a  troop  of  Indians  having  appeared,  the 
Sieur  de  la  Salle  went  to  meet  them,  and 
concluded  a  peace,  receiving  and  giving  hos- 
tages. He  then  encamped  near  their  vil- 
lage, and  they  brought  us  some  little  corn. 
We  at  last  went  up  to  the  village,  where 
these  Indians  had  prepared  us  a  feast  in 
their  fashion.  They  had  notified  their  allies 
and  neighbors,  so  that  when  we  went  to  en- 
joy the  banquet  in  a  large  square  we  saw  a 
confused  mass  of  armed  savages  arrive,  one 
after  another.  We  were,  however,  wel- 
comed by  the  chiefs ;  but,  having  ground  for 
suspicion,  each  kept  his  gun  ready,  and  the 
Indians,  seeing  it,  durst  not  attack  us. 

The  Sieur  de  la  Salle  retired  with  all  his 
people  and  his  hostages  into  his  camp  and 
gave  up  the  Quinipissa  women.  The  next 
morning  before  daybreak  our  sentinel  re- 
ported that  he  heard  a  noise  among  the 
canes  on  the  banks  of  the  river.  The  Sieur 
Dautray  said  that  it  was  nothing,  but  the 
Sieur  de  la  Salle,  always  on  the  alert,  liav- 
148 


LA   SALLE 

ing  already  heard  the  noise,  called  to  arms. 
As  we  instantly  heard  war  cries,  and  arrows 
were  fired  from  quite  near  us,  we  kept  up 
a  brisk  fire,  although  it  began  to  rain.  Day 
broke,  and  after  two  hours'  fighting,  and 
the  loss  of  ten  men  killed  on  their  side  and 
many  wounded,  they  took  to  flight,  without 
any  of  us  having  been  injured.  Our  people 
wished  to  go  and  burn  the  village  of  these 
traitors,  but  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  prudently 
wished  only  to  make  himself  formidable  to 
this  nation,  without  exasperating  it,  in  order 
to  manage  them  in  time  of  need.  We,  how- 
ever, destroyed  many  of  their  canoes.  They 
were  near,  but  contented  themselves  with 
running  away  and  shouting.  Our  Mohe- 
gans  took  only  two  scalps. 

We  set  out,  then,  the  evening  of  the  same 
day,  the  i8th  of  April,  and  arrived  on  the 
first  of  May  at  the  Koroa,  after  having  suf- 
fered much  from  want  of  provisions.  The 
Koroa  had  been  notified  by  the  Quinipissa, 
their  allies,  and  had,  with  the  intention  of 
avenging  them,  assembled  Indians  of  sev- 
eral villages,  making  a  very  numerous  army, 
which  appeared  on  the  shores  and  often  ap- 
proached us  to  reconnoitre.  As  this  nation 
had  contracted  friendship  with  us  on  our 
voyage  down,  we  were  not  a  little  surprised 
at  the  change ;  but  they  told  us  the  reason, 
149 


JOURNEYS   OF 

which  obhgcd  us  to  keep  on  our  guard.  The 
Sieur  de  la  Salle  even  advanced  intrepidly, 
so  that  the  Indians  durst  not  undertake  any- 
thing. 

When  we  passed  going  down  we  were 
pretty  well  provided  with  Indian  corn,  and 
had  put  a  quantity  in  cache  pretty  near  their 
village.  We  found  it  in  good  condition, 
and,  having  taken  it  up,  continued  our 
route,  but  were  surprised  to  see  the  Indian 
corn  at  this  place,  which,  the  29th  of  March, 
was  just  sprouting  from  the  ground,  already 
fit  to  eat,  and  we  then  learned  that  it  ripened 
in  fifty  days.  We  also  remarked  other  corn 
four  inches  above  ground. 

We  set  out,  then,  the  same  day,  the  first 
of  May,  in  the  evening,  and  after  seeing  sev- 
eral different  nations  on  the  following  days 
and  having  renewed  our  alliance  with  the 
Taensa,  who  received  us  perfectly  well,  we 
arrived  at  the  Akansa,  where  we  were  simi- 
larly received.  We  left  it  on  the  eighteenth ; 
the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  went  on  with  two  ca- 
noes of  our  Mohcgans  and  pushed  on  to  a 
hundred  leagues  below  the  River  Seignelay, 
where  he  fell  sick.  We  joined  him  there 
with  the  rest  of  the  troop  on  the  second  of 
June.  As  his  malady  was  dangercnis  and 
brought  him  to  extremity,  unable  to  ad- 
vance any  further,  he  was  obliged  to  send 
150 


LA    SALLE 

forward  the  Sieur  de  Tonty  for  the  IHnois 
and  Miamis  to  take  up  our  caches  and  put 
everything  in  order,  appointing  Tonty  to 
command  there.  But  at  last  the  malady  of 
the  Sieur  de  la  Salle,  which  lasted  forty 
days,  during  which  I  assisted  him  to  my  ut- 
most, having  somewhat  abated,  we  started 
at  the  close  of  July  by  slow  journeys.  At 
the  end  of  September  we  reached  the  Miami 
River,  where  we  learned  of  several  military 
expeditions  made  by  the  Sieur  de  Tonty 
after  he  had  left  us.  He  had  left  the  Sieur 
Dautray  and  the  Sieur  Cochois  among  the 
Miamis,  and  other  people  among  the  Ilinois, 
with  two  hundred  new  cabins  of  Indians, 
who  were  going  to  repeople  that  nation.  The 
said  Sieur  de  Tonty  pushed  on  to  Missili- 
makinak  to  render  an  account,  more  at 
hand,  of  our  discovery  to  the  governor,  the 
Count  de  Frontenac,  on  behalf  of  the  Sieur 
de  la  Salle,  who  prepared  to  retrace  his 
steps  to  the  sea  the  next  spring  with  a  larger 
force  and  families  to  begin  establishments. 
The  River  Seignelay  is  very  beautiful, 
especially  below  the  Ilinois  (Indians),  wide 
and  deep,  forming  two  lakes  as  far  as  the 
sea  {jusqii'a  la  mer),  edged  with  hills,  cov- 
ered with  beautiful  trees  of  all  kinds, 
v/hence  you  discern  vast  prairies,  on  which 
herds  of  wild  cattle  pasture  in  confusion. 
151 


JOURNEYS   OF 

The  river  often  overflows  and  renders 
the  country  around  marshy  for  twenty  or 
thirty  leagues  from  the  sea.^^  The  soil 
around  is  good,  capable  of  producing  all 
that  can  be  desired  for  subsistence.  We 
even  found  hemp  there  growing  wild,  much 
finer  than  that  of  Canada.  The  whole  coun- 
try on  this  river  is  charming  in  its  aspect. 

It  is  the  same  with  what  we  have  visited 
on  the  River  Colbert.  When  you  are 
twenty  or  thirty  leagues  below  the  Maroa 
the  banks  are  full  of  canes  until  you  reach 
the  sea,  except  in  fifteen  or  twenty  places, 
where  there  are  very  pretty  hills  and  spa- 
cious, convenient  landing  places.  The  in- 
undation does  not  extend  far,  and  behind 
these  drowned  lands  you  see  the  finest  coun- 
try in  the  world.  Our  hunters,  French  and 
Indians  were  delighted  with  it.  For  an  ex- 
tent of  at  least  two  hundred  leagues  in 
length  and  as  much  in  breadth,  as  we  were 
told,  there  are  vast  fields  of  excellent  land, 
diversified  here  and  there  with  pleasing 
hills,  lofty  woods,  groves  through  which 
you  might  ride  on  horseback,  so  clear  and 
unobstructed  are  the  paths.  These  little 
forests  also  line  the  rivers,  which  intersect 
the  country  in  various  places,  and  vi^hich 

"  I  cannot  see  what  he  means  by  the  term  sea 
in  these  two  places,  unless  in  the  former  it  means 
the  mouth  and  in  the  latter  the  bed  of  the  river. 


LA   SALLE 

abound  in  fish.  The  crocodiles  are  danger- 
ous here,  so  much  so  that  in  some  parts  no 
one  would  venture  to  expose  himself  or 
even  put  his  hand  out  of  his  canoe.  The 
Indians  told  us  that  these  animals  often 
dragged  in  their  people,  where  they  could 
anywhere  get  hold  of  them. 

The  fields  are  full  of  all  kinds  of  game, 
wild  cattle,  stags,  does,  deer,  bears,  turkeys, 
partridges,  parrots,  quails,  woodcock,  wild 
pigeons  and  ring-doves.  There  are  also 
beavers,  otters,  martens,  till  a  hundred 
leagues  below  the  Maroa,  especially  in  the 
river  of  the  Missouri,  the  Ouabache,  that 
of  the  Chepousseau  (the  Cumberland), 
which  is  opposite  it,  and  on  all  the  smaller 
ones  in  this  part;  but  we  could  not  learn 
that  there  were  any  beavers  on  this  side  to- 
ward the  sea. 

There  are  no  wild  beasts  formidable  to 
man.  That  which  is  called  Michybichy 
never  attacks  man,  although  it  devours  the 
strongest  beasts.  Its  head  is  like  that  of  a 
lynx,  though  much  larger;  the  body  long 
and  large,  like  a  deer's,  but  much  more 
slender;  the  legs  also  shorter,  the  paws  like 
those  of  a  wildcat,  but  much  larger,  with 
longer  and  stronger  claws,  wliich  it  uses 
to  kill  the  beasts  it  would  devour.  It  eats 
a  little,  then  carries  off  the  rest  on  its  back 
153 


JOURNEYS   OF 

and  hides  it  under  some  leaves,  where  ordi- 
narily no  other  beast  of  prey  touches  it.  Its 
skin  and  tail  resemble  those  of  a  lion,  to 
which  it  is  inferior  only  in  size. 

The  cattle  of  this  country  surpass  ours 
in  size;  their  head  is  monstrous  and  their 
look  frightful,  on  account  of  the  long,  black 
hair  with  which  it  is  surrounded,  and  which 
hangs  below  the  chin  and  along  the  houghs 
of  this  animal.  It  has  on  the  back  a  kind  of 
upright  crests  (coste),  of  which  that  near- 
est the  neck  is  longest;  the  others  diminish 
gradually  to  the  middle  of  the  back.  The 
hair  is  fine  and  scarce  inferior  to  wool.  The 
Indians  wear  their  skins,  which  they  dress 
very  neatly  with  earth,  which  serves  also 
for  paint.  Tliese  animals  are  easily  ap- 
proached and  never  fly  from  you  ;  they  could 
be  easily  domesticated. 

There  is  another  little  animal  (the  opos- 
sum), like  a  rat,  though  as  large  as  a  cat, 
with  silvery  hair  sprinkled  with  black.  The 
tail  is  bare,  as  thick  as  a  large  finger,  and 
about  a  foot  long;  with  this  it  suspends 
itself  when  it  is  on  the  branches  of  trees.  It 
has  under  the  belly  a  kind  of  p>ouch,  where 
it  carries  its  young  when  pursued. 

The  Indians  assured  us  that  inland,  to- 
ward the  west,  there  are  animals  on  which 
men  ride,  and  which  carry  very  heavy  loads ; 
154 


LA    SALLE 

they  described  them  as  horses,  and  showed 
us  two  feet  which  were  actually  hoofs  of 
horses. 

We  observed  everywhere  wood  of  various 
kinds,  fit  for  every  use,  and,  among  others, 
the  most  beautiful  cedars  in  the  world,  and 
another  kind  shedding  an  abundance  of 
gum,  as  pleasant  to  burn  as  the  best  French 
pastilles.  We  also  remarked  everywhere 
hemlocks  and  many  other  pretty  large  trees 
with  white  bark.  The  cottonwood  trees  are 
large;  of  these  the  Indians  dig  out  canoes 
forty  or  fifty  feet  long,  and  have  sometimes 
fleets  of  a  hundred  and  fifty  below  their  vil- 
lages. We  saw  every  kind  of  tree  fit  for 
shipbuilding.  There  is  also  plenty  of  hemp 
for  cordage,  and  tar  might  be  made  remark- 
ably near  the  sea. 

You  meet  prairies  everywhere,  sometimes 
of  fifteen  or  twenty  leagues  front  and  three 
or  four  deep,  ready  to  receive  the  plough. 
The  soil  is  excellent,  capable  of  supporting 
great  colonies.  Beans  grow  wild,  and  the 
stalk  lasts  several  years,  always  bearing 
fruit ;  it  is  thicker  than  an  arm  and  runs  up 
like  ivy  to  the  top  of  the  highest  trees.  The 
peach  trees  are  quite  like  those  of  France 
and  very  good ;  they  are  so  loaded  with 
fruit  that  the  Indians  have  to  prop  up  those 
they  cultivate  in  their  clearings.  There  are 
155 


JOURNEYS    OF 

whole  forests  of  ven,''  fine  mulberries,  of 
which  we  ate  the  fruit  from  the  month  of 
May ;  many  plum  trees  and  other  fruit  trees, 
some  known  and  others  unknown  in  Eu- 
rope ;  vines,  pomegranates  and  horse  chest- 
nuts are  common.  They  raise  three  or  four 
crops  of  com  a  year.  I  have  already  stated 
that  I  saw  some  ripe,  while  more  was 
sprouting.  Winter  is  known  only  by  the 
rains. 

We  had  not  time  to  look  for  mines;  we 
only  found  coal  in  several  places;  the  In- 
dians who  had  lead  and  copper  wished  to 
lead  us  to  many  places  whence  they  take  it ; 
there  are  quarries  of  very  fine  stone,  white 
and  black  marble,  yet  the  Indians  do  not 
use  it. 

These  tribes,  though  savage,  seem  gener- 
ally of  very  good  dispositions,  affable,  oblig- 
ing and  docile.  They  have  no  true  idea  of 
religion  by  a  regular  worship,  but  we  re- 
marked some  confused  ideas  and  a  particu- 
lar veneration  they  had  for  the  sun,  which 
they  recognize  as  Him  who  made  and  pre- 
serves all.  It  is  surprising  how  difl^erent 
their  language  is  from  that  of  tribes  not 
ten  leagues  off;  they  manage,  however,  to 
understand  each ;  and,  besides,  there  is  al- 
ways some  interpreter  of  one  nation  resid- 
ing in  another,  when  they  are  allies,  and 
156 


LA   SALLE 

who  acts  as  a  kind  of  consul.  They  are  very 
different  from  our  Canada  Indians  in  their 
houses,  dress,  manners,  inclinations  and 
customs,  and  even  in  the  form  of  the  head, 
for  theirs  is  very  flat.  They  have  large 
public  squares,  games,  assemblies;  they 
seem  lively  and  active;  their  chiefs  possess 
all  the  authority;  no  one  would  dare  pass 
between  the  chiefs  and  the  cane-torch  which 
bums  in  his  cabin,  and  is  carried  before  him 
when  he  goes  out ;  all  make  a  circuit  around 
it  with  some  ceremony.  The  chiefs  have 
their  valets  and  officers,  who  follow  them 
and  serve  them  everywhere.  They  dis- 
tribute their  favors  and  presents  at  will.  In 
a  word,  we  generally  found  them  to  be  men. 
We  saw  none  who  knew  firearms,  or  even 
iron  or  steel  articles,  using  stone  knives  and 
hatchets.  This  was  quite  contrary  to  what 
had  been  told  us,  when  we  were  assured 
that  they  traded  with  the  Spaniards,  who 
were  said  to  be  only  twenty-five  or  thirty 
leagues  off ;  they  had  axes,  guns  and  all  com- 
modities found  in  Europe.  We  found,  in- 
deed, tribes  that  had  bracelets  of  real  pearls, 
but  they  pierce  them^  when  hot  and  thus 
spoil  them.  Monsieur  de  la  Salle  brought 
some  with  him.  The  Indians  told  us  that 
their  warriors  brought  them  from  very  far, 
in  the  direction  of  the  sea,  and  receive  them 
157 


JOURNEYS   OF 

in  exchange  from  some  nations  apparently 
on  the  Florida  side. 

There  are  many  other  things  which  our 
people  observed  on  advancing  a  litde  into 
the  coimtry  to  hunt,  or  which  we  learned 
from  the  tribes  through  whom  we  passed; 
but  I  should  be  tedious  were  I  to  detail 
them,  and,  besides,  the  particulars  should 
be  better  known. 

To  conclude,  our  expedition  of  discovery 
was  accomplished  without  having  lost  any 
of  our  men,  French  or  Indian,  and  without 
anybody's  being  wounded,  for  which  we 
were  indebted  to  the  protection  of  the  Al- 
mighty and  the  great  capacity  of  Monsieur 
de  la  Salle.  I  will  say  nothing  here  of  con- 
versions ;  formerly  the  apostles  had  but  to 
enter  a  country,  when  on  the  first  publica- 
tion of  the  gospel  great  conversions  were 
seen.  I  am  but  a  miserable  sinner,  infinitely 
destitute  of  the  merits  of  the  apostles ;  but 
we  must  also  acknowledge  that  these  mirac- 
ulous ways  of  grace  are  not  attached  to  the 
exercise  of  our  ministry ;  God  employs  an 
ordinary  and  common  way,  following  which 
I  contented  myself  with  announcing,  as  well 
as  I  could,  the  principal  truths  of  Christian- 
ity to  the  nations  I  met.  The  Ilinois  lan- 
guage served  me  about  a  hundred  leagues 
down  the  river,  and  I  made  the  rest  under- 
158 


LA   SALLE 

stand  by  gestures  and  some  terms  in  their 
dialect  which  I  insensibly  picked  up;  but  I 
cannot  say  that  my  little  efforts  produced 
certain  fruits.  With  regard  to  these  peo- 
ple, perhaps  some  one,  by  a  secret  effect  of 
grace,  has  profited;  God  only  knows.  All 
we  have  done  has  been  to  see  the  state  of 
these  tribes  and  to  open  the  way  to  the  gos- 
pel and  to  missionaries,  having  baptized 
only  two  infants  whom  I  saw  struggling 
with  death,  and  who,  in  fact,  died  in  our 
presence. 

CHAPTER  VIL 

ACCOUNT  OF  THE  TAKING  POSSESSION  OF 
LOUISIANA    BY    M.    DE   LA    SALLE/    i682. 

"PROCES  VERBAL  OF  THE  TAKING  POSSESSION 
OF  LOUISIANA,  AT  THE  MOUTH  OF  THE 
MISSISSIPPI,  BY  THE  SIEUR  DE  LA  SALLE, 
ON   THE  9TH  OF  APRIL,   1 682. 

"Jaques  DE  LA  Metairie,  Notary  of  Fort 
Frontenac,  in  New  France,  commissioned 
to  exercise  the  said  function  of  Notary  dur- 
ing the  voyage  to  Louisiana,  in  North 
America,  by  M.  de  la  Salle,  Governor  of 
Fort  Frontenac  for  the  King,  and  comman- 

['  Reprinted  by  French,  in  1875,  in  Hist'l  Coll'ns 
La.  and  Fla.,  Second  Series,  page  17,  ff.] 


JOURNEYS  OF, 

dant  of  the  said  Discovery  by  the  commis- 
sion of  his  Majesty  given  at  St.  Germain,  on 
the  1 2th  of  May,  1678. 

"To  all  those  to  whom  these  presents  shall 
come,  greeting; — Know,  that  having  been 
requested  by  the  said  Sieur  de  la  Salle  to 
deliver  to  him  an  act,  signed  by  us  and  by 
the  witnesses  therein  named,  of  possession 
by  him  taken  of  the  country  of  Louisiana, 
near  the  three  mouths  of  the  River  Colbert,'' 
in  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  on  the  9th  of  April, 
1682. 

"In  the  name  of  the  most  high,  mighty, 
invincible  and  victorious  Prince,  Louis  the 
Great,  by  the  Grace  of  God,  King  of  France 
and  of  Navarre,  Fourteenth  of  that  name, 
and  of  his  heirs,  and  the  successor  of  his 
crown,  we,  the  aforesaid  Notary,  have  deliv- 
ered the  said  act  to  the  said  Sieur  de  la  Salle, 
the  tenor  whereof  follows: 

"On  the  27th  of  December,  1681,  M.  de 
la  Salle  departed  on  foot  to  join  M.  de 
Tonty,  who  had  preceded  him  with  his  fol- 
lowers and  all  his  equipage  forty  leagues 
into  the  Miamis  country,  where  the  ice  on 
the  River  Chekagou,  in  the  country  of  the 
Mascoutens  [Miamis],  had  arrested  his 
progress,  and  where,  when  the  ice  became 
stronger,  they  used  sledges  to  drag  the  bag- 

*  Mississippi. 
160 


LA    SALLE 

gage,  the  canoes  and  a  wounded  French- 
man through  the  whole  length  of  this  river 
and  on  the  Illinois,  a  distance  of  seventy 
leagues. 

"At  length,  all  the  French  being  together, 
on  the  25th  of  January,  1682,  we  came  to 
Pimiteoui.  From  that  place,  the  river  being 
frozen  only  in  some  parts,  we  continued  our 
route  down  the  River  Colbert,  sixty  leagues, 
or  thereabouts,  from  Pimiteoui,  and  ninety 
leagues,  or  thereabouts,  from  the  village  of 
the  Illinois.  We  reached  the  banks  of  the 
River  Colbert  on  the  6th  of  January  [Feb- 
ruary], and  remained  there  until  the  13th, 
waiting  for  the  savages,  whose  progress  had 
been  impeded  by  the  ice.  On  the  13th,  all 
having  assembled,  we  renewed  our  voyage, 
being  twenty-two  French,  carrying  arms, 
accompanied  by  the  Reverend  Father  Ze- 
nobe  Membre,^  one  of  the  Recollet  mission- 
aries, and  followed  by  eighteen  New  Eng- 
land savages  and  several  women,  Ilgon- 
quines,  Otchipoises  and  Huronnes.* 

"On  the  14th  we  arrived  at  the  village  of 
Maroa,  consisting  of  a  hundred  cabins, 
without  inhabitants.  Proceeding  about  a 
hundred  leagues  down  the  River  Colbert, 

[*  The  1875  reprint,  page  19,  has  the  word 
"and."] 

[*  Spelling  of  these  three  names  different  in 
1875  reprint.] 

161 


JOURNEYS    OF 

we  went  ashore  to  hunt  on  the  26th  of  Feb- 
ruary. A  Frenchman  was  lost  in  the  woods, 
and  it  was  reported  to  M.  de  la  Salle  that 
a  large  number  of  savages  had  been  seen  in 
the  vicinity.  Thinking  that  they  might  have 
seized  the  Frenchman,  and  in  order  to  ob- 
serve these  savages,  he  marched  through 
the  woods  during  two  days,  but  without 
finding  them,  because  they  had  all  been 
frightened  by  the  guns  which  they  had 
heard  and  had  fled. 

"Returning  to  camp,  he  sent  in  every  di- 
rection French  and  savages  on  the  search, 
with  orders,  if  they  fell  in  with  savages,  to 
take  them  alive,  without,  injury,  that  he 
might  gain  from  them  intelligence  of  this 
Frenchman.  Gabriel  Barbie,  with  two  sav- 
ages, having  met  five  of  the  Chikacha 
[Chickasaw]  nation,  captured  two  of  them. 
They  were  received  with  all  possible  kind- 
ness, and  after  he  had  explained  to  them 
that  he  was  anxious  about  a  Frenchman  who 
had  been  lost,  and  that  he  only  detained 
them  that  he  might  rescue  him  from  their 
hands,  if  he  was  really  among  them,  and 
afterwards  make  with  them  an  advan- 
tageous peace  (the  French  doing  good  to 
everybody),  they  assured  him  that  they  had 
not  seen  the  man  whom  we  sought,  but 
that  peace  would  be  received  with  the  great- 
162 


LA    SALLE 

est  satisfaction.  Presents  were  then  given 
to  them,  and,  as  they  had  signified  that  one 
of  their  villages  was  not  more  than  half  a 
day's  journey  distant,  M.  de  la  Salle  set  out 
the  next  day  to  go  thither;  but  after  travel- 
ing till  night,  and  having  remarked  that  they 
often  contradicted  themselves  in  their  dis- 
course, he  declined  going  farther  without 
more  provisions.  Having  pressed  them  to 
tell  the  truth,  they  confessed  that  it  was  yet 
four  days'  journey  to  their  villages,  and,  per- 
ceiving that  M.  de  la  Salle  was  angry  at 
having  been  deceived,  they  proposed  that 
one  of  them  should  remain  with  him,  while 
the  other  carried  the  news  to  the  village, 
whence  the  elders  would  come  and  join 
them  four  days'  journey  below  that  place. 
The  said  Sieur  de  la  Salle  returned  to  the 
camp  with  one  of  these  Chikachas,  and  the 
Frenchman  whom  we  sought  having  been 
found,  he  continued  his  voyage,  and  passed 
the  river  of  the  Chepontias  and  the  village 
of  the  Metsigameas  [Mitchigamea].  The 
fog,  which  was  very  thick,  prevented  his 
finding  the  passage  which  led  to  the  ren- 
dezvous proposed  by  the  Chikachas. 

"On  the  1 2th  of  March  we  arrived  at  the 

Kapaha    village    of    Akansa    [Arkansas]* 

Having  established  a  peace  there  and  taken 

possession,  we  passed,  on  the  15th,  another 

163 


JOURNEYS    OF 

of  their  villages,  situate  on  the  border  of 
their  river,  and  also  two  others,  farther  off 
in  the  depth  of  the  forest,  and  arrived  at 
that  of  Imaha,  the  largest  village  in  this 
nation,  where  peace  was  confirmed,  and 
where  the  chief  acknowledged  that  the  vil- 
lage belonged  to  his  Majesty.  Two  Akan- 
sas  embarked  with  J\I.  de  la  Salle  to  conduct 
him  to  the  Talusas  [Taensas],  their  allies, 
about  fifty  leagues  distant,  who  inhabit  eight 
villages  upon  the  borders  of  a  little  lake. 
On  the  19th  we  passed  the  villages  of 
Tourika  [Tonicas],  Jason  [Yazoo]  and 
Kouera  [Koroas]  ;  but  as  they  did  not 
border  on  the  river,  and  were  hostile  to 
the  Arkansas  and  Taensas,  we  did  not  stop 
there. 

"On  the  20th  we  arrived  at  the  Taensas, 
by  whom  we  were  exceedingly  well  received 
and  supplied  with  a  large  quantity  of  pro- 
visions. M.  de  Tonty  passed  a  night  at  one 
of  their  villages,  where  there  were  about 
seven  hundred  men,  carrying  arms,  assem- 
bled in  the  place.  Here  again  a  peace  was 
concluded.  A  peace  was  also  made  with  the 
Koroas,  whose  chief  came  there  from  the 
principal  village  of  the  Koroas,  two  [ten] 
leagues  distant  from  that  of  the  Natches. 
The  two  chiefs  accompanied  M.  de  la  Salle 
to  the  banks  of  the  river.  Here  the  Korea 
164 


LA    SALLE 

chief  embarked  with  him  °  to  conduct  him 
to  his  village,  where  peace  was  again  con- 
cluded with  this  nation,  which,  besides  the 
iive  other  villages  of  which  it  is  composed, 
is  allied  to  nearly  forty  others.  On  the  31st 
we  passed  the  village  of  the  Oumas  without 
knowing  it,  on  account  of  the  fog  and  its 
distance  from  the  river. 

"On  the  3d  of  April,  at  about  ten  o'clock 
in  the  morning,  we  saw  among  the  canes 
thirteen  or  fourteen  canoes.  M.  de  la  Salle 
landed  with  several  of  his  people.  Foot- 
prints were  seen,  and  also  savages,  a  little 
lower  down,  who  were  fishing,  and  who 
fled  precipitately  as  soon  as  they  discovered 
us.  Others  of  our  party  then  went  ashore 
on  the  borders  of  a  marsh  formed  by  the 
inundation  of  the  river.  M.  de  la  Salle  sent 
two  Frenchmen,  and  then  two  savages,  to 
reconnoitre,  who  reported  that  there  was  a 
village  [Tennipisas]  not  far  off,  but  that  the 
whole  of  this  marsh,  covered  with  canes, 
must  be  crossed  to  reach  it ;  that  they  had 
been  assailed  with  a  shower  of  arrows  by 
the  inhabitants  of  the  town,  who  had  not 
dared  to  engage  with  them  in  the  marsh, 
but  who  had  then  withdrawn,  although 
neither  the   French  nor  the  savages   with 

["The  1875  reprint  adds:  ("On  Easter  Sunday, 
the  29th  of  March.")]. 

165 


JOURNEYS   OF 

them  had  fired,  on  account  of  the  orders 
they  had  received  not  to  act  [fire]  unless  in 
pressing  danger.  Presently  we  heard  a 
drum-beat  in  the  village  and  the  cries  and 
howlings  with  which  these  barbarians  are 
accustomed  to  make  attacks.  We  waited 
three  or  four  hours,  and,  as  we  could  not 
encamp  in  this  marsh,  and  seeing  no  one 
and  no  longer  hearing  anything,  we  em- 
barked. 

"An  hour  afterwards  we  came  to  the  vil- 
lage of  Maheouala,  lately  destroyed,  and 
containing  dead  bodies  and  marks  of  blood. 
Two  leagues  below  this  place  we  encamped. 
We  continued  our  voyage  till  the  6th,  when 
we  discovered  three  channels  by  which  the 
River  Colbert  (Mississippi)  discharges  it- 
self into  the  sea.  We  landed  on  the  bank 
of  the  most  w^estern  channel,  about  three 
leagues  from  its  mouth.  On  the  7th  M.  de 
la  Salle  went  to  reconnoitre  the  shores  of 
the  neighboring  sea,  and  M.  de  Tonty  like- 
wise examined  the  great  middle  channel. 
They  found  these  two  [three]  outlets  beau- 
tiful, large  and  deep.  On  the  8th  we  reas- 
cended  the  river,  a  little  above  its  conflu- 
ence with  the  sea,  to  find  a  dry  place 
beyond  the  reach  of  inundations.  The  eleva- 
tion of  the  North  Pole  was  here  about  27°. 
Here  we  prepared  a  column  and  a  cross, 
166 


LA    SALLE 

and  to  the  said  column  were  affixed  the  arms 
of  France,  with  this  inscription : 

*LOIS  LE  GRAND,  ROI  DE  FRANCE  ET  DE  NA- 
VARRE, REGNE;  LE  NEUVIEME  AVRIL, 
1682.' 

The  whole  party,  under  arms,  chanted  the 
Te  Deiini,  the  Exaudiat,  the  Domine  salznim 
fac  Re  gem;  and  then,  after  a  salute  of  fire- 
arms and  cries  of  Vive  le  Roi,  the  column 
was  erected  by  M.  de  la  Salle,  who,  stand- 
ing near  it,  said,  with  a  loud  voice,  in 
French :  'In  the  name  of  the  most  high, 
mighty,  invincible  and  victorious  Prince, 
Louis  the  Great,  by  the  Grace  of  God  King 
of  France  and  of  Navarre,  Fourteenth  of 
that  name,  this  ninth  day  of  April,  one 
thousand  six  hundred  and  eighty-two,  I,  in 
virtue  of  the  commission  of  his  Majesty 
which  I  hold  in  my  hand,  and  which  may 
be  seen  by  all  whom  it  may  concern,  have 
taken,  and  do  now  take,  in  the  name  of  his 
Majesty  and  of  his  successors  to  the  crown, 
possession  of  this  country  of  Louisiana,  the 
seas,  harbors,  ports,  bays,  adjacent  straits, 
and  all  the  nations,  people,  provinces,  cities, 
towns,  villages,  mines,  minerals,  fisheries, 
streams  and  rivers  comprised  in  the  extent 
of  said  Louisiana,  from  the  mouth  of  the 
great  River  St.  Louis,  on  the  eastern  side, 
167 


JOURNEYS   OF 

otherwise  called  Ohio;  Alighin  [Alle- 
ghany], Sipore,  or  Chukagona  [Chicago], 
and  this  with  the  consent  of  the  Chaouanons 
[Shawnees],  Chikachas  and  other  people 
dwelling  therein,  with  whom  we  have  made 
alliance  as  also  along  the  River  Colbert,  or 
Mississippi,  and  rivers  which  discharge 
themselves  therein,  from  its  source  beyond 
the  country  of  the  Kious  [Sioux],  or  Na- 
douessious,  and  this  with  their  consent,  and 
with  the  consent  of  the  Motantees,  Ilinois, 
Mesigameas,  Natches,  Koroas,  which  are 
the  most  considerable  nations  dwelling 
therein,  with  whom,  also,  we  have  made  al- 
liance, either  by  ourselves  or  by  others  in 
our  behalf  f  as  far  as  its  mouth  at  the  sea, 
or  Gulf  of  Mexico,  about  the  27th  degree 
of  the  elevation  of  the  North  Pole,  and  also 
to  the  mouth  of  the  River  of  Palms ;  upon 
the  assurance  which  we  have  received  from 
all  these  nations  that  we  are  the  first  Euro- 
peans who  have  descended  or  ascended  the 
said  River  Colbert ;  hereby  protesting 
against  all  those  who  may  in  future  under- 

'  "There  is  an  obscurity  in  this  enumeration  of 
places  and  Indian  nations  which  may  be  ascribed 
to  an  ignorance  of  the  geography  of  the  country; 
but  it  seems  to  be  the  design  of  the  Sieur  de  la 
Salle  to  take  possession  of  the  whole  territory 
watered  by  the  Mississippi  from  its  mouth  to  its 
source,  and  by  the  streams  flowing  into  it  on 
both  sides." — Note  by  Mr.  Sparks. 
168 


LA    SALLE 

take  to  invade  any  or  all  of  these  countries, 
people  or  lands  above  described,  to  the 
prejudice  of  the  right  of  his  Majesty,  ac- 
quired by  the  consent  of  the  nations  herein 
named.  Of  which,  and  of  all  that  can  be 
needed,  I  hereby  take  to  witness  those  who 
hear  me,  and  demand  an  act  of  the  Notary, 
as  required  by  law.' 

"To  which  the  whole  assembly  responded 
with  shouts  of  Vive  le  Roi  and  with  salutes 
of  firearms.  Moreover,  the  said  Sieur  de 
la  Salle  caused  to  be  buried  at  the  foot  of 
the  tree,  to  which  the  cross  was  attached, 
a  leaden  plate,  on  one  side  of  which  were 
engraved  the  arms  of  France  and  the  fol- 
lowing Latin  inscription : 

LVDOVICVS    MAGNUS   REGNAT. 

NONO  APRILIS  CIG  IGC  LXXXII. 
HOBERTVS  CAVELIER,  CVM  DOMINO  DE  TONTY, 
LEGATO,  R.  P.  ZENOBIO  MEMBRE,  RECOLLECTO, 
ET  VIGINTI  GALLIS,  PRIMVS  HOC  FLYMEN, 
INDE  AB  ILINEORVM  PAGO,  ENAVIGAVIT, 
EJVSQUE  OSTIVM  FECIT  PERVIVM,  NONO 
APRILIS  ANNI  CIG  IGC  LXXXII. 

After  which  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  said  that 
his  Majesty,  as  eldest  son  of  the  Church, 
would  annex  no  country  to  his  crown  with- 
out making  it  his  chief  care  to  establish  the 
169 


JOURNEYS    OF 

Christian  religion  therein,  and  that  its  sym- 
bol must  now  be  planted ;  which  was  ac- 
cordingly done  at  once  by  erecting  a  cross, 
before  which  the  l^exilla  and  the  Dotnme 
salvuiii  fac  Regeni  were  sung.  Whereupon 
the  ceremony  was  concluded  with  cries  of 
Vive  le  Roi. 

"Of  all  and  every  of  the  above,  the  said 
Sieur  de  la  Salle  having  required  of  us  an 
instrumtnt,  we  have  delivered  to  him  the 
same,  sigi  ed  by  us,  and  by  the  undersigned 
witnesses,  this  ninth  day  of  April,  one  thou- 
sand six  hundred  and  eighty-two. 

"La  Metairie, 
"Notary. 

"De  La  Salle. 

"P.  Zenobe,  Recollet  Missionary. 

"Henry  de  Tonty. 

"Francois  de  Boisrondet. 

"Jean  Bourdon. 

"Sieur  d'Autray. 

"Jaques  Cauchois, 

"Pierre  You. 

"Gilles  Meucret. 

"Jean  Michel,  Surgeon. 

"Jean  Mas. 

"Jean  Dulignon. 

"Nicolas  de  la  Salle." 


170 


LA   SALLE 


CHAPTER  VIIL 

[memoirs  presented  by  la  SALLE  TO  THE 
MARQUIS  DE  SEIGNELAY    IN    1684.] 

A  MEMOIR  ^  OF  ROBERT  CAVELIER  DE  LA  SALLE: 
ON  THE  NECESSITY  OF  FITTING  OUT  AN 
EXPEDITION  TO  TAKE  POSSESSION  OF 
LOUISIANA. 

The  principal  result  which  the  Sieur  de 
la  Salle  expected  from  the  great  perils  and 
labors  which  he  underwent  in  the  discovery 
of  the  Mississippi  was  to  satisfy  the  wish 
expressed  to  him  by  the  late  Monseigneur 
Colbert  of  finding  a  port  where  the  French 
might  establish  themselves  and  harass  the 
Spaniards  in  those  regions  from  whence 
they  derive  all  their  wealth.  The  place 
which  he  proposes  to  fortify  lies  sixty 
leagues  above  the  mouth  of  the  River  Col- 
bert (Mississippi),  in  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,, 
and  possesses  all  the  advantages  for  such 
a  purpose  which  can  be  wished  for,  both 
upon  account  of  its  excellent  position  and 
the  favorable  disposition  of  the  savages  who 
live  in  that  part  of  the  country. 

[*  This  memoir  and  the  one  following  it  were 
composed  during  the  early  part  of  1684.] 
171 


JOURNEYS   OF 

Tlie  right  of  the  King  to  this  territory 
is  the  common  right  of  all  nations  to  lands 
which  they  have  discovered — a  right  which 
cannot  be  disputed  after  the  possession  al- 
ready taken  in  the  name  of  his  Majesty  by 
the  Sieur  de  la  Salle,  with  the  consent  of 
the  greater  number  of  its  inhabitants.  A 
colony  can  easily  be  founded  there,  as  the 
land  is  very  fertile  and  produces  all  articles 
of  life — as  the  climate  is  very  mild — as  a 
port  or  two  would  make  us  masters  of  the 
whole  of  this  continent — as  the  posts  there 
are  good,  secure  and  afford  the  means  of 
attacking  an  enemy  or  retreating  in  case 
cd  necessity — and  also  since  all  things  are 
found  there  requisite  for  refitting.  Its  dis- 
tance inland  will  prevent  foreigners  from 
sending  fleets  to  attack  it,  since  they  would 
be  exposed  to  destruction  by  fire,  which  they 
could  only  avoid  with  difficulty  in  a  narrow 
river,  for  if  fire-ships  were  sent  down  they 
would  not  fail  to  fall  aboard  them  under 
the  favor  of  night  and  of  the  current.  The 
coast  and  the  banks,  being  overflowed  for 
more  than  twenty  leagues  above  the  mouth, 
make  it  inaccessible  by  land  ;  and  the  friend- 
ship of  the  savages  towards  the  French 
and  the  haired  which  they  bear  towards 
the  Spaniards  will  serve  also  as  a  strong 
barrier. 

172 


LA   SALLE 

These  Indians,  irritated  by  the  tyranny  of 
the  Spaniards,  carry  on  a  cruel  war  against 
them,  without  even  the  aid  of  firearms, 
which  they  have  not  yet  had.  On  the  other 
hand,  they  have  been  so  conciliated  by  the 
gentleness  of  the  Sieur  la  Salle  that  they 
have  made  peace  with  him  and  offered  to 
accompany  him  anywhere,  and  he  has  no 
doubt  that  they  would  favor  his  enterprise 
as  much  as  they  would  oppose  themselves 
to  those  of  the  enemies  of  France.  This 
any  person  may  judge  of  by  the  offerings 
which  were  made  at  the  posts  on  which  the 
arms  of  France  were  attached,  and  by  the 
assembly  of  more  than  eighteen  thousand 
Indians  of  various  nations,  some  of  whom 
had  come  from  a  distance  of  more  than  two 
thousand  leagues,  who  met  together  in  a 
single  camp  (village) — and  who,  forgetting 
their  own  old  disputes,  threw  themselves 
into  his  arms  and  made  him  master  of  their 
different  interests — and  also  from  the  depu- 
tations sent  to  him  by  the  Cicacas  and  the 
Kansas,  and  other  nations,  offering  to  fol- 
low wherever  he  might  be  pleased  to  lead 
them.  By  the  union  of  these  forces  it  would 
be  possible  to  form  an  army  of  more  than 
fifteen  thousand  savages,  who,  finding  them- 
selves supported  by  the  French  and  by  the 
Abenaki  followers  of  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle, 
^73 


JOURNEYS   OF 

with  the  aid  of  the  arms  which  he  has  given 
them,  would  not  find  any  resistance  in  the 
province  which  he  intends  to  attack,  where 
there  are  not  more  than  four  hundred  native 
Spaniards,  in  a  country  more  than  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  leagues  in  length  and  fifty 
in  breadth,  all  of  whom  are  officers  or  ar- 
tisans, better  able  to  explore  the  mines  than 
to  oppose  themselves  vigorously  to  an  ex- 
pedition which  would,  moreover,  be  favored 
by  Mulattoes,  Indians  and  by  Negroes  if 
their  liberty  were  promised  to  them. 

Upon  account  of  these  considerations  the 
Sieur  de  la  Salle  proposes,  with  the  approba- 
tion of  Monseigneur,  to  undertake  this  en- 
terprise, and,  if  peace  should  prevent  the 
execution  of  it,  he  oflFers  to  establish  a  very 
advantageous  station  for  commercial  pur- 
poses, very  easy  to  be  maintained,  and  from 
whence,  at  the  commencement  of  hostilities, 
it  would  be  possible  to  take  from  the  Span- 
iards a  good  part  of  their  mines. 

New  Biscay  is  the  most  northern  prov- 
ince of  Mexico,  and  is  situated  between  25° 
and  27°  30'  of  north  latitude.  It  is  bounded 
to  the  north  by  vast  forests  frequented  by 
the  people  called  Terliquiquimeki,  whom  the 
Spanish  only  know  by  the  name  of  "Indios 
Bravos  y  de  giierra,"  never  having  been 
able  to  subdue  them  or  to  compel  them  to 
174 


LA   SALLE 

live  in  peace.  From  this  province  they  ex- 
tend themselves  as  far  as  the  River  Seigne- 
lai,  which  is  distant  from  it  in  some  parts 
forty  and  in  some  fifty  leagues.  On  the 
east  it  is  bounded  by  the  same  forest,  by  the 
River  Panuco,  from  which  it  is  separated 
by  a  chain  of  mountains,  which  also  form 
its  limits  to  the  south,  from  the  province  of 
Zacatecas  to  the  west,  from  that  of  Culiacan 
to  the  northwest,  where  it  separates  the  lat- 
ter province  from  the  new  kingdom  of  Leon, 
not  having  more  than  two  or  three  passages 
by  which  succors  could  be  expected. 

The  distance  from  Mexico,  which  is  more 
than  one  hundred  and  fifty  leagues,  in- 
creases these  difficulties,  without  speaking 
of  the  necessity  which  the  viceroys  would 
have  of  dividing  their  forces  in  order  to  de- 
fend the  maritime  districts,  and  the  small 
number  of  native  Spaniards  to  be  met  with 
in  this  vast  extent  of  country,  from  whence 
no  succors  are  to  be  obtained  but  with  great 
loss  of  time  and  trouble — the  height,  also, 
of  the  mountains  which  they  must  pass  for 
this  purpose  are  too  rough  for  a  people  ener- 
vated by  long  inactivity,  to  be  able  to  sur- 
mount without  great  means  of  conveyance 
and  train.  Even  if  succors  could  arrive 
more  quickly  than  is  presumed,  the  prox- 
imity of  the  woods  and  of  the  river  would 
175 


JOURNEYS   OF 

aid  as  much  to  secure  a  retreat  and  preserve 
any  booty,  as  it  is  favorable  to  an  irruption 
of  which  the  enemy  would  have  no  informa- 
tion before  we  should  be  in  the  middle  of 
his  territory. 

As  they  do  not  think  themselves  to  be  in 
danger  of  being  attacked,  except  by  sav- 
ages, they  have  no  one  place  capable  of  sus- 
taining an  attack,  though  the  country  is 
very  rich  in  silver  mines,  more  than  thirty 
having  been  already  discovered.  These 
would  be  much  more  profitable  to  the 
French  on  account  of  the  proximity  of  the 
river,  which  would  serve  for  the  transport 
of  the  metals ;  whereas  the  Spaniards,  from 
ignorance,  from  fear  of  savages,  and  on  ac- 
count of  the  personal  interest  of  the  vice- 
roys, transport  the  silver  at  a  great  expense, 
as  needless  to  us  as  it  is  to  them  inevitable, 
at  so  great  a  distance. 

Assuming,  then,  these  facts,  the  Sieur  de 
la  Salle  offers,  if  the  war  continues,  to  leave 
France  with  two  hundred  men ;  fifty  more 
will  join  him  who  are  in  the  country,  and 
fifty  buccaneers  (filibiistiers)  can  be  taken 
in  passing  St.  Domingo.  The  savages  who 
are  at  Fort  St.  Louis,  to  the  number  of  more 
than  four  thousand  warriors,  together  with 
many  others  who  will  join,  can  be  directed 
to  descend  the  river.  This  army  he  will  di- 
1/6 


LA    SALLE 

vide  into  three  divisions,  to  maintain  it  more 
easily.  In  order  to  compel  the  Spaniards 
to  divide  their  forces,  two  of  these  divisions 
shall  each  be  composed  of  fifty  French, 
fifty  Abenakis  and  two  hundred  savages. 
They  will  receive  orders  to  attack  at  the 
same  time  the  two  extremities  of  the  prov- 
ince, and  on  the  same  day  the  center  of  the 
country  will  be  entered  with  the  other  di- 
vision, and  it  is  certain  that  we  shall  be  sec- 
onded by  all  the  unhappy  in  the  country 
who  groan  in  slavery.  The  English  colony 
of  Boston,  although  it  is  more  powerful 
than  all  those  of  Spain,  has  been  desolated 
by  six  hundred  savages.  Chili  has  been 
ruined  by  the  Araucanians,  and  the  evil 
which  the  Iroquois,  although  without  dis- 
cipline or  generalship,  have  done  in  Canada, 
are  instances  from  which  we  may  infer  how 
disastrous  is  this  mode  of  warfare  to  those 
who  are  not  experienced  in  it,  and  also  what 
may  be  expected  from  the  aid  of  savages  led 
by  experienced  Frenchmen  having  much 
knowledge  of  the  country. 

This  province  being  taken,  its  approaches 
may  be  protected  by  Indians  and  Mulattoes, 
who  may  be  required  to  occupy  the  narrow- 
est passes  of  the  mountains,  by  which  alone 
it  can  be  entered,  and  firearms  may  be  given 
to  them  to  defend  it  with  greater  efficiency. 
17;^ 


JOURNEYS   OF 

This  undertaking  is  certain  of  success  if  it 
is  executed  in  this  manner,  since  the  Span- 
iards cannot  be  prepared  to  defend  passes 
of  which  they  have  no  knowledge ;  whereas, 
if  attacked  by  the  River  Panuco,  or  by 
sea,  in  open  warfare,  before  the  maritime 
places  are  conquered,  or  the  River  Pan- 
uco is  ascended,  which  is  populated  from 
its  mouth  by  their  settlements,  they  would 
have  leisure  to  occupy  passes  with  which 
they  are  well  acquainted  and  to  make 
the  result  doubtful,  or  at  least  more 
difficult. 

It  is  true  that,  in  order  to  make  a  diver- 
sion, the  buccaneers  (filibustiers)  might  be 
of  service  if  they  were  previously  to  make 
an  attack  and  made  descents  on  the  coast, 
for  then  they  would  attract  the  Spanish 
troops  to  that  side,  who  would  thus  leave 
the  distant  provinces  without  assistance. 
The  French  of  St.  Domingo  would  be  more 
suited  for  these  expeditions  than  for  those 
which  can  be  made  with  the  assistance  of 
savages,  who  would  not  fail  to  be  offended 
from  neglect  of  the  civility  which  is  neces- 
sary in  order  to  obtain  their  good  will,  and 
from  neglect  of  the  reserve  which  ought  to 
be  maintained  towards  their  wives,  of  whom 
they  are  very  jealous — which  causes  of  of- 
fense would  render  useless  the  greatest 
178 


LA    SALLE 

chances  of  success  which  the  French  might 
possess  in  this  enterprise. 

It  is  certain  that  France  would  draw  from 
these  mines  greater  benefits  than  Spain, 
from  the  facility  of  transport,  although 
Spain  obtains  more  than  six  millions  (of 
ecus?)  a  year.  We  might  also,  perhaps,  open 
a  passage  to  the  South  Sea,  which  is  not 
more  distant  than  the  breadth  of  the  prov- 
ince of  Culiacan,  not  to  mention  the  possi- 
bility of  meeting  with  some  rivers  near  to 
the  Seignelai,  which  may  discharge  them- 
selves on  that  side. 

The  Sieur  de  la  Salle  would  not  think 
this  affair  so  easy  if,  in  addition  to  his 
knowledge  of  their  language,  he  was  not 
familiar  with  the  manners  of  the  savages, 
through  which  he  may  obtain  as  much  con- 
fidence by  a  behavior  in  accordance  with 
their  practices,  as  he  has  impressed  on  them 
a  feeling  of  respect  in  consequence  of  all 
that  he  has  yet  done  in  passing  with  a  small 
number  of  followers  through  so  many  na- 
tions and  punishing  those  who  broke  their 
word  with  him.  After  this  he  has  no  doubt 
that  in  a  short  time  they  will  become  good 
French  subjects,  so  that,  without  drawing 
any  considerable  number  of  men  from  Eu- 
rope, they  will  form  a  powerful  colony,  and 
will  have  sufficient  troops  to  act  in  any 
179 


JOURNEYS    OF 

emergency  and  for  the  execution  of  the 
greatest  enterprises.  The  missionaries  of 
Paraguay  and  the  English  of  Boston  have 
succeeded  so  well  that  equal  success  may 
be  expected  by  the  adoption  of  measures 
similar  to  theirs. 

Even  if  the  peace  of  Europe  should  make 
it  necessary  to  postpone  the  execution  of 
this  design  as  respects  the  conquest  pro- 
posed, it  would  always  be  important  to  place 
ourselves  in  a  position  to  succeed  in  them 
when  the  state  of  affairs  shall  change,  tak- 
ing immediate  possession  of  this  country 
in  order  not  to  be  anticipated  by  other 
nations,  who  will  not  fail  to  take  advan- 
tage of  the  information  which  they  cer- 
tainly have,  since  the  Dutch  published  a 
statement  of  the  discovery  of  this  country 
in  one  of  their  newspapers  more  than  a  year 
ago. 

If,  also,  the  Spaniards  should  delay  satis- 
fying the  King  at  the  conclusion  of  a  peace 
an  expedition  at  this  point  will  oblige  them 
to  hasten  its  conclusion,  and  to  give  to  his 
Majesty  important  places  in  Europe  in  ex- 
change for  those  which  they  may  lose  in  a 
country  of  the  possession  of  which  they  are 
extremely  jealous.  In  order,  also,  to  hasten 
them,  some  of  their  maritime  places  may  be 
insulted  en  passant,  the  pillage  of  which 
1 80 


LA    SALLE 

may  well  repay  the  expenses  of  the  expedi- 
tion. 

There  never  was  an  enterprise  of  such 
great  importance  proposed  at  so  little  risk 
and  expense,  since  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle 
asks  only  for  its  execution  a  vessel  of  about 
thirty  guns,  the  power  of  raising  in  France 
two  hundred  men  whom  he  shall  think 
proper  for  his  purpose,  and  exclusive  of  the 
fitting  out  of  the  ship ;  provisions  for  six 
months,  some  cannon  to  mount  at  a  fort, 
the  necessary  arms  and  supplies,  and  where- 
with to  pay  the  men  for  the  period  of  a  year. 
These  expenses  would  be  repaid  in  a  short 
time  by  the  duties  which  his  Majesty  might 
have  levied  on  the  articles  which  would  en- 
ter into  the  commerce  that  would  be  carried 
on  there,  and  respecting  which  a  separate 
memoir  has  been  delivered. 

It  would  not  require  much  time  to  bring 
this  expedition  to  an  end,  since  it  is  nearly 
certain  that  the  savages  can  be  assembled 
next  winter  and  complete  this  conquest  in 
the  spring,  in  sufficient  time  to  report  the 
news  of  it  by  the  time  the  first  vessel  returns 
to  France. 

The  Sieur  de  la  Salle  does  not  ask  for 

regular  troops.     He  prefers  the  assistance 

of  persons  of  different  trades,  or  at  least  a 

majority  of  such  first,  because  they  will  be- 

i8i 


JOURNEYS   OF 

come  soldiers  when  it  may  be  necessary  for 
them  to  be  so ;  secondly,  because,  in  enter- 
prises of  this  kind  success  depends  more  on 
the  experience  of  the  commander  than  on 
the  bravery  of  those  who  have  only  to  obey, 
as  was  shown  in  what  was  done  by  those 
who  previously  accompanied  the  Sieur  de  la 
Salle,  the  greater  part  of  whom  had  not 
seen  service ;  thirdly,  this  warfare  is  so  dif- 
ferent from  that  carried  on  in  Europe  that 
the  oldest  soldiers  would  be  found  to  be  still 
novices,  so  that  fifty  old  soldiers  to  keep 
the  others  in  order,  together  with  fifty  buc- 
caneers, and  those  whom  the  Sieur  de  la 
Salle  has  in  the  country  accustomed  to  such 
expeditions,  will  be  sufficient  to  sustain  the 
rest  and  to  render  them  capable  of  any  en- 
terprise whatever;  fourthly,  if  only  soldiers 
were  taken  it  would  require  double  expense 
to  bring  to  the  settlement  the  necessary  la- 
borers ;  fifthly,  the  officers  who  would  com- 
mand the  troops,  finding  a  life  of  greater 
hardship  than  they  had  imagined,  and  un- 
mixed with  any  pleasure,  would  soon  be  dis- 
satisfied, and  this  feeling  would  easily  com- 
municate itself  to  the  soldiers  when  they 
should  discover  that  there  was  no  relaxa- 
tion of  their  fatigues  in  debauch  and  license; 
sixthly,  it  would  be  the  ruin  of  the  settle- 
ment to  commence  it  with  idlers,  such  as 
182 


LA    SALLE 

most  soldiers  are.  Far  from  contributing 
to  the  prosperity  of  a  colony,  they  destroy 
its  most  favorable  hopes  by  the  disorders 
which  they  cause. 

It  may  be  objected  that  the  River  Seigne- 
lai  (Illinois)  is,  perhaps,  more  distant  from 
New  Biscay  than  has  been  assumed.  To 
answer  this  difficulty  it  is  sufficient  to  men- 
tion that  the  mouth  through  which  it  en- 
ters the  Mississippi  is  one  hundred  leagues 
west-northwest  from  the  place  where  the 
latter  river  discharges  itself  into  the  Gulf 
of  Mexico,  and  that  it  has  been  ascended 
more  than  sixty  leagues,  going  always  to 
the  west,  after  which  Monseigneur  can 
judge  of  the  truth  of  what  has  been  put 
forth  respecting  the  distance  between  this 
river  and  the  province. 

The  second  difficulty  which  may  be  raised' 
may  be  that,  peace  being  concluded,  no  ad- 
vantage can  be  taken  of  that  post.  The 
answer  is  that  peace  is  the  most  proper  time 
to  prepare  for  war  when  it  shall  become 
necessary.  Even  if  peace  should  prevent 
us  from  deriving  all  the  advantages  which 
we  may  expect  from  this  expense,  we 
should  be  well  remunerated  if  we  choose  to 
profit  by  the  future,  because  we  should  have 
more  leisure  to  conciliate  and  discipline  the 
savages  and  to  strengthen  the  colony,  from 
183 


JOURNEYS   OF 

which  circumstances  we  could  obtain  more 
important  advantages  and  execute  more  glo- 
rious and  profitable  undertakings  (choses). 
It  may  be  feared  that  we  may,  at  a  future 
time,  make  an  unavailing  search  for  that 
which  we  might  now  abandon  to  strangers. 
The  injury  which  the  colonies  of  Hudson 
Bay  and  of  New  England,  which  were  for- 
merly disregarded,  do  to  New  France  ought 
to  serve  as  a  warning  on  this  subject. 

The  third  objection  respecting  the  insults 
which  the  Spaniards  might  inflict  on  the 
settlement  has  already  been  answered  in  de- 
scribing the  position,  which  makes  it  inac- 
cessible by  land  and  almost  equally  safe 
from  an  attack  by  water,  in  consequence  of 
the  danger  a  hostile  fleet  would  incur  if  it 
should  attempt  to  advance  so  far  up  a  very; 
narrow  river. 

Fourthly,  those  who  do  not  know  the  pol- 
icy of  the  savages,  and  the  knowledge  which 
they  have  of  their  true  interests,  will,  per- 
haps, think  it  to  be  dangerous  to  arm  them. 
But,  besides  the  experience  which  we  have 
of  the  contrary,  not  one  of  the  French  allies 
having  yet  abused  the  favor  (condescend' 
ance)  shown  to  them  for  these  eighty  years, 
it  is  certain  that  those  nations  which  we  call 
savage  know  too  well  the  importance  to 
them  of  having  arms  for  their  own  defense 
184 


LA    SALLE 

and  for  the  conquest  of  their  enemies  to 
make  use  of  them  against  those  who  supply 
them. 

Fifthly,  it  may  be  said  that  should  so 
small  a  force  succeed  in  driving  the  Span- 
iards from  this  province,  it  would  not  be 
adequate  to  resist  all  the  forces  of  Mexico, 
which  they  would  unite  to  revenge  this  af- 
front. The  answer  to  this  is  that  these 
forces  are  not  so  considerable  as  is  supposed 
— that  they  cannot  leave  unprotected  other 
places — that  it  will  require  much  time  to 
assemble  them,  the  diversion  which  the  buc- 
caneers may  cause  compelling  them  to  pro- 
vide for  the  most  urgent  want — and  that, 
finally,  the  Indians,  Mulattoes  and  Negroes, 
armed  and  freed  by  this  first  success  from 
the  terror  which  they  have  of  the  Spaniards, 
would  be  able  to  dispute  the  advance  of  the 
largest  army  which  could  be  raised  in  Mex- 
ico. Besides  which,  they  would  stake  all,  in 
order  not  to  be  again  reduced  to  a  state  of 
slavery. 

Sixthly,  it  is  not  believed  that  the  expense 
will  be  an  objection,  since  it  is  too  incon- 
siderable in  proportion  to  the  great  advan- 
tages to  be  hoped  for,  even  if  peace  should 
delay  their  enjoyment.  These  advantages 
are  of  such  importance  as  to  make  it  prof- 
itable to  incur  it  for  some  vears  rather  than 
185 


JOURNEYS    OF 

to  hazard  their  loss.  The  enterprise  ought 
not  to  be  delayed  to  a  period  when  we 
should  no  longer  have  the  mastery  of  it. 
It  is  also  to  be  believed  that  the  Spaniards, 
feeling  themselves  pushed  so  closely  on  that 
side,  would  assent  to  conditions  of  peace 
most  advantageous  to  France,  and,  as  has 
been  already  stated,  the  duties  which  his 
Majesty  could  levy  on  the  merchandise 
which  would  be  obtained  from  thence  would 
repay  with  usury  the  expenses  incurred. 

Seventhly,  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  would 
oblige  himself,  in  case  the  peace  should  con- 
tinue for  three  years,  and  thus  prevent  him 
from  executing  the  proposed  design,  to  re- 
pay to  his  Majesty  all  that  may  be  advanced, 
or  to  forfeit  the  property  and  government 
which  he  shall  have  created — which  he 
hopes  his  Majesty  will  be  willing  to  confirm 
to  him. 

NOTE  OF  WHAT  IS  REQUISITE  FOR 
THE  EXPEDITION. 

A  vessel  of  thirty  guns,  armed  and  pro- 
vided with  everything  necessary,  and  the 
crew  paid  and  supported  during  the  voyage ; 
twelve  other  pieces  of  cannon  for  the  two 
forts,  of  five  or  six  pounds  to  the  ball,  and 
eight  cannon  of  ten  or  twelve,  with  the  gun 
i86 


LA   SALLE 

carriages  and  train;  two  hundred  balls  for 
each  cannon,  and  powder  in  proportion. 

A  hundred  picked  men,  levied  at  the  ex- 
pense of  his  Majesty,  but  selected  by  the 
Sieur  de  la  Salle.  Their  pay  for  one  year 
to  be  one  hundred  and  twenty  (?)  a  man, 
and,  as  the  money  would  be  of  no  avail  to 
them  in  the  colony,  it  shall  be  converted  at 
the  place  of  embarkation  into  goods  {defu- 
rees)  proper  for  them. 

The  pay,  during  six  months,  of  one  hun- 
dred (?)  for  the  other  men,  enlisted  by  the 
Sieur  de  la  Salle,  to  be  paid  by  his  Majesty 
during  the  time  they  shall  be  employed  in 
the  proposed  conquests. 

Victuals  for  all  during  six  months ;  six 
hundred  muskets  for  arming  four  hundred 
savages,  in  addition  to  one  thousand  six 
hundred  who  are  already  armed,  and  the 
others  for  the  two  hundred  Frenchmen. 

A  hundred  pair  of  pistols  proper  to  be 
worn  in  the  girdle;  one  hundred  and  fifty 
swords,  and  as  many  sabres,  twenty-five 
pikes  (pertuisanes) ,  twenty-five  halberds, 
twenty  thousand  pounds  of  gunpowder,  four 
to  five  (?)  of  which  to  be  given  to  each  sav- 
age and  the  remainder  left  in  the  forts  and 
for  the  use  of  the  French  during  the  ex- 
pedition. 

Musquet  balls  of  the  proper  calibre  in 
187 


JOURNEYS    OF 

proportion ;  gun-worms,  powder-horns, 
rifle-flints,  three  hundred  to  four  hundred 
grenades,  six  petards  of  the  smallest  and 
largest  kind,  pincers,  pickaxes,  hoes,  hones, 
shovels,  axes,  hatchets  and  cramp-irons  for 
the  fortifications  and  buildings;  five  thou- 
sand to  six  thousand  pounds  of  iron  and 
four  hundred  pounds  of  steel  of  all  sorts.  A 
forge,  with  its  appurtenances,  besides  the 
tools  necessary  for  armorers,  joiners,  coop- 
ers, wheelwrights,  carpenters  and  masons. 

Two  boxes  of  surgery  provided  with 
medicine  and  instruments. 

Two  chapels  and  the  ornaments  for  the 
almoners. 

A  barge  of  forty  tons  in  pieces  {e% 
'fagots),  or  built  with  its  appurtenances. 

Refreshments  for  the  sick. 

MEMOIR^  OF  THE  SIEUR  DE  LA  SALLE  REPORT- 
ING TO  MONSEIGNEUR  DE  SEIGNELAY 
THE  DISCOVERIES  MADE  BY  HIM  UNDER 
THE  ORDER  OF  HIS  MAJESTY. 

AIoNSEiGNEUR  CoLBERT  was  of  Opinion, 
with  regard  to  the  various  propositions 
which  were  made  in  1678,  that  it  was  im- 
portant for  the  glory  and  service  of  the  King 

[^  This  is  reprinted  with  minor  textual  varia- 
tions in    French,  Hist'l  CoU'us  of  La.  and  Fla. 
Second  Series  (1875),  pape  i,  ff.] 
188 


LA   SALLE 

to  discover  a  port  for  his  vessels  in  the  Gulf 
of  Mexico. 

The  Sieur  de  la  Salle  offered  to  under- 
take the  discovery,  at  his  own  expense,  if  it 
should  please  his  Majesty  to  grant  to  him 
the  seignory  of  the  government  of  the  forts 
which  he  should  erect  on  his  route,  together 
with  certain  privileges  as  [and]  an  indem- 
nification for  the  great  outlay  which  the  ex- 
pedition would  impose  on  him.  Such  grant 
was  made  to  him  by  letters  patent  on  the 
I2th  of  May,  1678. 

In  order  to  execute  this  commission  he 
abandoned  all  his  own  pursuits  which  did' 
not  relate  to  it.  He  did  not  omit  anything 
necessary  for  success,  notwithstanding  dan- 
gerous sickness,  considerable  losses  and 
other  misfortunes  which  he  suffered,  which 
would  have  discouraged  any  other  person 
not  possessed  of  the  same  zeal  with  himself 
and  the  same  industry  in  the  performance 
of  the  undertaking.  He  has  made  five  voy- 
ages under  extraordinary  hardships,  extend- 
ing over  more  than  five  thousand  leagues, 
most  commonly  on  foot,  through  snow  and 
water,  almost  without  rest,  during  five 
years.  He  has  traversed  more  than  six  hun- 
dred leagues  of  unknown  country,  among 
many  barbarous  and  cannibal  nations  (an- 
thropophages),  against  whom  he  was 
189 


JOURNEYS   OF 

obliged  to  fight  almost  daily,  although  he 
was  accompanied  by  only  thirty-six  men, 
having  no  other  consolation  before  him  than 
a  hope  of  bringing  to  an  end  an  enterprise 
which  he  believed  would  be  agreeable  to 
his  Majesty. 

After  having  happily  executed  this  de- 
sign, he  hopes  Monseigneur  will  be  pleased 
to  continue  him  in  the  title  (propriete)  and 
government  of  the  fort  which  he  has  had 
erected  in  the  country  of  his  discovery, 
where  he  has  placed  several  French  set- 
tlers— and  has  brought  together  many  sav- 
age nations,  amounting  to  more  than  eigh- 
teen thousand  in  number,  who  have  built 
houses  there  and  sown  much  ground — to 
commence  a  powerful  colony. 

This  is  the  only  fruit  of  an  expenditure  of 
one  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  ecus — the 
only  means  of  satisfying  his  creditors  who 
advanced  to  him  the  aid  which  he  required 
after  very  considerable  losses. 

He  believes  that  he  has  sufl&ciently  estab- 
lished the  truth  of  his  discovery  by  the  offi- 
cial instrument  signed  by  all  his  compan- 
ions, which  was  placed  last  year  in  the  hands 
of  Monseigneur  Colbert  by  the  Count  de 
Frontenac,  as  also  by  a  report  drawn  up  by 
the  Reverend  Father  Zenoble  [Zenobe 
Membre],  missionary,  who  accompanied 
190 


LA   SALLE 

him  during  this  voyage,  and  who  is  at  this 
time  Guardian  of  Bapaume;  by  the  testi- 
mony of  three  persons  who  accompanied 
him,  and  whom  he  has  brought  with  him  to 
France,  and  who  are  now  in  Paris,  and  by 
the  testimony  of  many  other  persons  who 
came  this  year  from  Canada,  and  who  have 
seen  one  Vital,  sent  by  M.  de  la  Barre  to 
collect  information  respecting  him  on  the 
spot,  and  who  has  confirmed  the  truth  of  the 
discovery. 

All  these  proofs  are  sufficient  to  contra- 
dict whatever  may  have  been  written  to  the 
contrary  by  persons  who  have  no  knowledge 
of  the  country  where  the  discovery  was 
made,  never  having  been  there.  But  he 
hopes  to  remove  all  these  prejudices  by  car- 
rying into  execution  the  design  which  he 
entertains,  under  the  favor  of  Monseigneur, 
of  returning  to  the  country  of  his  discovery 
by  the  mouth  of  the  river  in  the  Gulf  of 
Mexico,  since  he  must  have  lost  his  sense 
if,  without  being  certain  of  the  means  of 
arriving  where  he  proposes,  he  exposed  not 
only  his  own  fortune  and  that  of  his  friends 
to  manifest  destruction,  but  his  own  honor 
and  reputation  to  the  unavoidable  disgrace 
of  having  imposed  on  the  confidence  of  his 
Majesty  and  of  his  ministers.  Of  this  there 
is  less  likelihood,  because  he  has  no  interest 
191 


JOURNEYS   OF 

to  disguise  the  truth,  since,  if  Monseigneur 
does  not  think  it  convenient  to  undertake 
any  enterprise  in  that  direction,  he  will  not 
ask  anything  more  from  his  Majesty  until 
his  return  from  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  confirms 
the  truth  of  what  he  has  alleged.  With 
reference  to  the  assertion  that  his  voyage 
would  produce  no  profit  to  France,  he  re- 
plies that  if  he  proposed  it  as  a  thing  to  be 
done,  and  on  that  account  sought  for  as- 
sistance to  undertake  the  enterprise,  or  re- 
ward after  having  succeeded  in  it,  its  use- 
fulness would  deserve  consideration ;  but, 
being  here  only  in  order  to  render  an  ac- 
count of  the  orders  he  received,  he  does  not 
think  himself  to  be  responsible  for  anything 
but  their  execution,  it  not  being  his  duty  to 
examine  the  intentions  of  Monseigneur  Col- 
bert. Having,  however,  observed  great  ad- 
vantages which  both  France  and  Canada 
may  derive  from  his  discovery,  he  believes 
that  he  owes  this  detail  to  the  glory  of  the 
King,  the  welfare  of  the  kingdom,  to  the 
honor  of  the  ministry  of  Monseigneur,  and 
to  the  memory  of  him  who  employed  him 
upon  this  expedition.  He  does  this  the  more 
willingly  as  his  requests  will  not  expose 
him  to  a  suspicion  of  self-interest ;  and  as 
the  influence  which  he  has  acquired  over 
the  people  of  that  continent  places  him  in  a 
192 


LA   SALLE 

position  to  execute  what  he  proposes,  the 
things  Vx^hich  he  states  will  find  greater 
credit  in  the  minds  of  those  who  shall  in- 
vestigate them. 

Firstly,  the  service  of  God  may  be  estab- 
lished there  by  the  preaching  of  the  gospel 
to  numerous  docile  and  settled  (scdentaires) 
nations,  who  will  be  found  more  willing  to 
receive  it  than  those  of  other  parts  of  Amer- 
ica upon  account  of  their  greater  civiliza- 
tion. They  have  already  temples  and  a  form 
of  worship. 

Secondly,  we  can  effect  there  for  the 
glory  of  our  King  very  important  conquests, 
both  by  land  and  by  sea ;  or,  if  peace  should 
oblige  us  to  delay  the  execution  of  them,  we 
might,  without  giving  any  cause  of  com- 
plaint, make  preparations  to  render  us  cer- 
tain of  success  whenever  it  shall  please  the 
King  to  command  it. 

The  provinces  which  may  be  seized  are 
very  rich  in  silver  mines — they  adjoin  the 
River  Colbert  (the  Mississippi) — they  are 
far  removed  from  succor — they  are  open 
everywhere  on  the  side  on  which  we  should 
attack  them,  and  are  defended  only  by  a 
small  number  of  persons,  so  sunk  in  effemi- 
nacy and  indolence  as  to  be  incapable  of  en- 
during the  fatigue  of  wars  of  this  descrip- 
tion. 

193 


JOURNEYS   OF 

The  Sieur  de  la  Salle  binds  himself  to 
have  this  enterprise  ripe  for  success  within 
one  year  after  his  arrival  on  the  spot,  and 
asks  only  for  this  purpose  one  vessel,  some 
arms  and  munitions,  the  transport,  main- 
tenance and  pay  of  two  hundred  men  during 
one  year.  Afterwards  he  will  maintain 
them  from  the  produce  of  the  country,  and 
supply  their  other  wants  through  the  credit 
and  confidence  which  he  has  obtained  among 
those  nations  and  the  experience  which  he 
has  had  of  those  regions.  He  will  give  a 
more  detailed  account  of  this  proposal  when 
it  shall  please  Monseigneur  to  direct  him. 

Thirdly,  the  river  is  navigable  for  more 
than  a  hundred  leagues  for  ships,  and  for 
barks  for  more  than  five  hundred  leagues  to 
the  north,  and  for  more  than  eight  hundred 
from  east  to  west.  Its  three  mouths  are  as 
many  harbors,  capable  of  receiving  every 
description  of  ships ;  where  those  of  his 
Majesty  will  always  find  a  secure  retreat 
and  all  that  may  be  necessary  to  refit  and  re- 
victual — which  would  be  a  great  economy 
to  his  Majesty,  who  would  no  longer  find 
it  necessary  to  send  the  things  needed  from 
France  at  a  great  expense,  the  country  pro- 
ducing the  greater  part  of  them.  We  could 
even  build  there  as  many  ships  as  we  should 
desire,  the  materials  for  building  and  rig- 
194 


LA    SALLE 

ging  them  being  in  abundance,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  iron,  which  may,  perhaps,  be  dis- 
covered. 

In  the  first  place,  we  should  obtain  there 
everything  which  has  enriched  New  Eng- 
land and  Virginia,  and  which  constitute  the 
foundation  of  their  commerce  and  of  their 
great  wealth — timber  of  every  kind,  salted 
meat,  tallow,  corn,  sugar,  tobacco,  honey, 
wax,  resin  and  other  gums,  immense  pas- 
turages, hemp  and  other  articles  with  which 
more  than  two  hundred  vessels  are  every 
year  freighted  in  New  England  to  carry 
elsewhere. 

The  newly  discovered  country  has,  be- 
sides its  other  advantages,  that  of  the  soil, 
which, being  only  partly  covered  with  wood,' 
forms  a  campaign  of  great  fertility  and  ex- 
tent, scarcely  requiring  any  clearing.  The 
mildness  of  the  climate  is  favorable  to  the 
rearing  of  a  large  number  of  cattle,  which 
cause  great  expense  where  the  winter  is  se- 
vere. There  is  also  a  prodigious  number 
(plus  un  nombre  prodigieux)  of  buffaloes, 
stags,  hinds,  roes,  bears,  otters,  lynxes. 
Hides  and  furs  [in  the  greatest  abundance] 
are  to  be  had  there  almost  for  nothing  {a 
vil  prix),  the  savages  not  yet  knowing  the 

['  The  reprint  by  French  (page  9)  reads, 
"which  being  well  timbered."] 


JOURNEYS   OF 

value  of  our  commodities.  There  are  cot- 
ton, cochineal,  nuts,  turnsols,  entire  forests 
of  mulberry  trees,  salt,  slate,  coal,  vines, 
apple  trees ;  so  that  it  would  be  easy  to  make 
wine,  cider,  oil  of  nuts,  of  turnsols,  and  of 
olives,  also,  if  olive  trees  were  planted  there ; 
silk  and  dye-woods.  It  will  not  be  neces- 
sary to  import  from  Europe  horses,  oxen, 
swine,  fowls  or  turkeys,  which  are  to  be 
found  in  different  parts  [every  part]  of  the 
country,  nor  to  import  provisions  for  the 
colonists,  who  would  quickly  find  subsist- 
ence. 

Whilst  other  colonies  are  open  and  ex- 
posed to  the  descents  of  foreigners  by  as 
many  points  as  their  coasts  are  washed  by 
the  sea,  whereby  they  are  placed  under  a 
necessity  of  having  many  persons  to  watch 
these  points  of  access,  one  single  post, 
established  towards  the  lower  part  of  the 
river,  will  be  sufificient  to  protect  a  territory 
extending  from  more  than  eight  hundred 
leagues  from  north  to  south,  and  still  far- 
ther from  east  to  west,  because  its  banks 
are  only  accessible  from  the  sea  through 
the  mouth  of  the  river,  the  remainder  of 
the  coast  being  impenetrable  inland  for 
more  than  twenty  leagues,  in  consequence 
of  woods,  bogs,  reeds  and  marshes  (terres 
tremhlantes),  through  which  it  is  impossible 
196 


LA    SALLE 

to  march ;  and  this  may  be  the  reason  why 
the  exploration  of  that  river  has  been  neg- 
lected by  the  Spaniards,  if  they  have  had 
any  knowledge  of  it.  The  country  is  equally 
well  defended  in  the  interior  against  the  ir- 
ruptions of  neighboring  Europeans  by  great 
chains  of  mountains  stretching  from  east 
to  west,  from  which  branches  of  the  river 
take  their  source. 

It  is  true  that  the  country  is  more  open 
towards  the  southwest,  where  it  borders  on 
Mexico,  where  the  very  navigable  river,  the 
Seignelay,*  which  is  one  of  the  branches  of 
the  Colbert  (the  Mississippi),  is  only  sepa- 
rated by  a  forest  of  three  to  four  days'  jour- 
ney in  depth.  But,  besides  that  the  Span- 
iards there  are  feeble  and  far  removed  from 
the  assistance  of  Mexico,  and  from  that 
which  they  could  expect  by  sea,  this  place 
[country]  is  [likewise]  protected  from  their 
insults  by  a  great  number  of  warlike  sav- 
ages, who  close  this  passage  to  them, 
and  who,  constantly  engaged  with  them 
in  cruel  wars,  would  certainly  inflict 
greater  evil  when  sustained  by  some 
French,  whose  more  mild  and  more  hu- 
mane mode  of  governing  will  prove  a  great 
means   for  the   preservation   of   the   peace 

*  The  reprint  by  French,  page  — ,  reads,  "the 
Sablonniere"  ("Red  River  of  Louisiana"). 
197 


JOURNEYS    OF 

made  between  them  and  the  Sieur  de  la 
Salle. 

To  maintain  this  establishment,  which  is 
the  only  one  required  in  order  to  obtain  all 
the  advantages  mentioned,  two  hundred 
men  only  are  needed,  who  would  also  con- 
struct the  fortifications  and  buildings  and 
effect  the  clearings  necessary  for  the  suste- 
nance of  the  colony,  after  which  there  would 
be  no  further  expenditure.  The  goodness 
of  the  country  will  induce  the  settlers  {hab- 
itans)  to  remain  there  willingly.  The  ease 
in  which  they  will  live  will  make  them  at- 
tend to  the  cultivation  of  the  soil  and  to  the 
production  of  articles  of  commerce,  and  will 
remove  all  desire  to  imitate  the  inhabitants 
of  New  France,  who  are  obliged  to  seek 
subsistence  in  the  woods,  under  great  fa- 
tigues, in  hunting  for  peltries,  which  are 
their  principal  resource.  These  vagrant 
courses,  common  in  New  France,  will  be 
easily  prevented  in  the  new  country,  be- 
cause, as  its  rivers  are  all  navigable,  there 
will  be  a  great  facility  for  the  savages  to 
come  to  our  settlement  and  for  us  to  go  to 
them  in  boats  which  can  ascend  all  the 
branches  of  the  river. 

If  foreigners  anticipate  us,  they  will  de- 
prive France  of  all  the  advantages  to  be 
expected  from  the  success  of  the  enterprise. 
198 


LA   SALLE 

They  will  complete  the  ruin  of  New  France, 
which  they  already  hem  in  through  Vir- 
ginia, Pennsylvania,  New  England  and  the 
Hudson's  Bay.  They  will  not  fail  to  ascend 
the  river  as  high  as  possible  and  to  estab- 
lish colonies  in  the  places  nearest  to  the  sav- 
ages who  now  bring  their  furs  to  Montreal  ; 
they  will  make  constant  inroads  into  the 
countries  of  the  latter,  which  could  not  be 
repressed  by  ordinances  of  his  Majesty. 
They  have  already  made  several  attempts  to 
discover  this  passage,  and  they  will  not  neg- 
lect it  now  that  the  whole  world  knows  that 
it  is  discovered,  since  the  Dutch  have  pub- 
lished it  in  their  newspapers  upwards  of  a 
year  ago.  Nothing  more  is  required  than 
to  maintain  the  possession  taken  by  the 
Sieur  de  la  Salle,  in  order  to  deprive  them 
of  such  a  desire  and  to  place  ourselves  in  a 
position  to  undertake  enterprises  against 
them  glorious  to  the  arms  of  his  Majesty, 
who  will  probably  derive  the  greatest  bene- 
fits from  the  duties  he  will  levy  there,  as  in 
our  other  colonies. 

Even  if  this  affair  should  prove  hurtful 
to  New  France,  it  will  contribute  to  its  se- 
curity and  render  our  commerce  in  furs 
more  considerable. 

There  will  be  nothing  to  fear  from  the 
Iroquois  when  the  nations  of  the  south, 
199 


JOURNEYS   OF 

strengthened  through  their  intercourse  with 
the  French,  shall  stop  their  conquests  and 
prevent  their  being  powerful  by  carrying  off 
a  great  number  of  their  women  and  chil- 
dren, which  they  can  easily  do  from  the  in- 
feriority of  the  weapons  of  their  enemies. 
As  respects  commerce,  that  post  will  prob- 
ably increase  our  traffic  still  more  than  has 
been  done  by  the  establishment  of  Fort 
F'rontenac,  which  was  built  with  success  for 
that  purpose,  for  if  the  Illinois  and  their 
allies  were  to  catch  the  beavers,  which  the 
Iroquois  now  kill  in  their  neighborhood  in 
order  to  carry  to  the  English,  the  latter,  not 
being  any  longer  able  to  get  them  from  their 
own  colonies,  would  be  obliged  to  buy  them 
from  us,  to  the  great  benefit  of  those  who 
have  the  privilege  of  this  traffic. 

These  were  the  views  which  the  Sieur  de 
la  Salle  had  in  placing  the  settlement  where 
it  is.  The  colony  has  already  felt  its  effects, 
as  all  our  allies,  who  had  fled  after  the  de- 
parture of  M.  de  Frontenac,  have  returned 
to  their  ancient  dwellings,  in  consequence  of 
the  confidence  caused  by  the  fort,  near 
which  they  have  defeated  a  party  of  Iro- 
quois, and  have  built  four  other  forts  to 
protect  themselves  from  hostile  incursions. 
The  Governor,  M.  de  la  Barre,  and  the  In- 
tendant,  M.  de  Meulles,  have  told  the  Sieur 
200 


LA    SALLE 

de  la  Salle  that  they  would  write  to  Mon- 
seigneur  to  inform  him  of  the  importance 
of  that  fort  in  order  to  keep  the  Iroquois 
in  check,  and  that  M.  de  Lagny  had  pro- 
posed its  establishment  in  1678.  Monseig- 
neur  Colbert  permitted  Sieur  de  la  Salle  to 
build  it  and  granted  it  to  him  as  a  property.^* 
In  order  to  prove  to  Monseigneur  the  sin- 
cerity of  his  intentions  still  more,  and  that 
he  had  no  other  motive  in  selecting  this  site 
than  the  protection  of  the  men  he  has  left 
there,  and  whom  he  did  not  think  right  to 
place  in  such  small  number  within  the  reach 
of  the  Spaniards,  and  without  cannon  and 
munition,  or  to  leave  in  so  distant  a  coun- 
try, where,  in  case  of  sickness,  they  could 
expect  no  assistance,  nor  to  return  home 
from  thence  without  danger,  he  offers  again 
to  descend  the  river  a  hundred  leagues  lower 
down,  and  nearer  the  sea,  and  to  establish 
there  another  fort,  demolishing  the  first,  in 
the  expectation,  however,  that  Monseigneur 
would  consider  the  expenses  incurred  in  its 
establishment. 

It  may  be  said,  firstly,  that  this  colony 
might  injure  the  commerce  of  Quebec  and 
cause  the  desertion  of  its  inhabitants,  but 
the  answer  is  that  by  descending  lower  no 
beavers  will  be  found.    Thus  the  first  diffi- 

"  The  fort  of  St.  Louis  on  the  Illinois. 
201 


JOURNEYS    OF 

culty  will  be  removed,  which  again  would 
not  have  any  foundation,  even  if  Fort  St. 
Louis  were  to  remain.  The  Illinois  will 
only  kill  the  beaver,  which,  after  their  de- 
parture, would  fall  to  the  share  of  the  Iro- 
quois only,  as  no  other  nation  dares  to  ap- 
proach these  districts.  There  is  also  no 
likelihood  that  deserters  would  choose  a 
long  and  difficult  route,  at  the  end  of  which 
they  would  be  still  subject  to  be  appre- 
hended and  punished,  whilst  they  have  an- 
other much  shorter  and  easier  one  to  New 
England,  where  they  are  quite  secure,  and 
which  many  take  every  year. 

A  second  objection  would  be  that  the 
goodness  of  the  country  would  attract  so 
many  people  as  to  diminish  the  population 
of  France,  as  it  is  said  Mexico  and  Peru 
have  depopulated  Spain;  but,  besides  that 
France  is  more  peopled  than  Spain  has  ever 
been,  and  that  the  expulsion  of  one  million 
eight  hundred  thousand  Moors,  added  to 
the  great  wars  she  has  had  to  sustain, 
is  the  real  cause  of  its  diminished  popula- 
tion, it  is  certain  that  the  number  of  the 
few  Spaniards  in  those  kingdoms,  who  are 
not  above  forty  thousand,  is  not  a  number 
of  emigrants  sufficient  to  make  any  percep- 
tible change  in  France,  which  already  counts 
more  than  one  hundred  thousand  settlers  in 
202 


LA   SALLE 

foreign  countries.  It  would  be  even  desir- 
able that,  instead  of  peopling  other  foreign 
kingdoms,  the  riches  of  the  country  newly- 
discovered  should  attract  them  to  it.  More- 
over, this  objection  has  already  been  an- 
swered, when  it  was  said  that  the  country 
can  be  defended  by  one  or  two  forts,  for 
the  protection  of  which  only  from  four  hun- 
dred to  five  hundred  men  are  required,  a 
number  comprising  only  one-half  of  the 
crew  of  a  large  vessel.®* 

Whatever  has  been  imagined  respecting 
the  mud  and  breakers  which  are  supposed 
to  stop  the  mouth  of  the  River  (Missis- 
sippi) [Mechas-Cebi]  is  easily  disproved  by 
the  experience  of  those  who  have  been  there 
[the  Spaniards],  and  who  found  the  en- 
trances fine,  deep  and  capable  of  admitting 
the  largest  vessels.  It  would  appear  that 
the  land  or  levees  de  terre  are  covered  in 
many  parts  with  good  [trees]  growing 
along  the  channel  of  the  river  very  far  into 
the  sea;  and  where  the  sea  is  deep  they 
would  not  be  suspected,  because  even  the 
[outlets  or]  creeks  of  the  sea  are  tolerably 
deep  at  that  distance,  and,  besides,  there  is 
every  appearance  that  the  current  of  the 
river  has   formed  these  kind  of  dikes  by 

['The  matter  included  between  the  asterisks  is 
omitted  in  the  reprint  by  French  of  1875.] 
203 


JOURNEYS   OF 

shoving  on  both  sides  the  mud  with  which 
the  winds  fill  the  neighboring  creeks,  be- 
cause those  causeways  are  to  be  right  and 
left  of  the  river,  forming  for  it  a  bed,  as  it 
were,  by  their  separation.  Nor  can  it  be  be- 
lieved that  these  levees ''  will  ever  change 
their  position,  since  they  consist  of  a  hard 
soil,  covered  with  pretty  large  trees  follow- 
ing regularly  the  banks  of  the  river,  which 
form  the  bed  of  it  for  more  than  six  leagues 
into  the  sea.* 

In  the  memoir  respecting  New  Biscay  the 
difficulty  has  been  dealt  with  respecting  the 
inconstancy  of  the  savages.  They  know  too 
well  how  important  it  is  to  them  to  live  on 
good  terms  with  us,  to  fail  in  their  fidelity, 
in  which  they  have  never  been  known  to  fail 
in  New  France.  Such  an  event  is  still  less 
to  be  apprehended  from  those  who  are  obe- 
dient and  submissive  to  their  caziques, 
whose  good  will  it  is  sufficient  to  gain  in 
order  to  keep  the  rest  in  obedience. 

'This  word  is  in  local  use  at  New  Orleans,  to 
describe  both  the  great  artificial  embankment  of 
the  river  and  any  natural  embankment. 

['  This  sentence  omitted  in  French's  1875  re- 
print.] 


204 


LA   SALLE 


CHAPTER  IX. 

ACCOUNT  OF  LA  SALLe's  ATTEMPT  TO  REACH 
THE  MISSISSIPPI  BY  SEA,  AND  OF  THE 
ESTABLISHMENT  OF  A  FRENCH  COLONY 
IN  ST.  LOUIS  BAY,  BY  FATHER  CHRIS- 
TIAN LE  CLERCQ. 

The  first  design  of  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle 
had  been  to  find  the  long-sought  passage 
to  the  Pacific  Ocean,  and  although  the  River 
Colbert  (Mississippi)  does  not  lead  to  it, 
yet  this  great  man  had  so  much  talent  and 
courage  that  he  hoped  to  find  it,  if  it  were 
possible,  as  he  would  have  done  had  God 
spared  his  life. 

The  Ilinois  territory,  and  vast  countries 
around,  being  the  center  of  his  discovery, 
he  spent  there  the  winter,  summer  and  be- 
ginning of  autumn,  1683,  in  establishing  his 
posts.  He  at  last  left  Monsieur  de  Tonty 
[in  August]  as  commandant  and  resolved 
to  return  to  France  to  render  an  account 
of  his  fulfilment  of  the  royal  orders.  He 
reached  Quebec  early  in  November,  and  Ro- 
chelle,  France,  on  the  23d  of  December. 

His  design  was  to  go  by  sea  to  the  mouth 
of  the  River  Colbert,  and  there  found  pow- 
205 


JOURNEYS   OF 

erful  colonies  under  the  pleasure  of  the 
King.  These  proposals  ^  were  favorably  re- 
ceived by  Monsieur  de  Seignelay,  Minister 
and  Secretary  of  State  and  Superintendent 
of  Commerce  and  Navigation  of  France. 
His  Majesty  accepted  them  and  conde- 
scended to  favor  the  undertaking  not  only 
by  new  powers  and  commissions,  which  he 
conferred  upon  him,  but  also  by  the  help 
of  vessels,  troops  and  money,  which  his 
royal  liberality  furnished  him. 

The  first  care  of  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle 
after  being  invested  with  these  powers  was 
to  provide  for  the  spiritual,  to  advance 
especially  the  glory  of  God  in  this  enterprise. 
He  turned  to  two  different  bodies  of  mis- 
sionaries in  order  to  obtain  men  able  to 
labor  in  the  salvation  of  souls  and  lay  the 
foundations  of  Christianity  in  this  savage 
land.  He  accordingly  applied  to  Monsieur 
Trongon,  superior-general  of  the  clergymen 
of  the  Seminary  of  St.  Sulpice,  who  will- 
ingly took  part  in  the  work  of  God  and  ap- 
pointed three  of  his  ecclesiastics,  full  of  zeal, 
virtue  and  capacity,  to  commence  these  new 
missions.  They  were  Monsieur  Cavelier, 
brother  of  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle;  Monsieur 

'  See  M.  de  la  Salle's  Memoir  in  Hist.  Coll.  of 
Louisiana,   Vol.   I.,   p.   25.     [Also   Vol.    I.,   Chap. 
VIII.     For  a  discussion  of  La  Salle's  object  of. 
Quar.  Texas  Hist.  Ass'n  V.,  97-112.] 
206 


LA    SALLE 

Chefdeville,  his  relative,  and  Monsieur  de 
Maiulle,^  all  three  priests. 

As  for  nearly  ten  years  the  Recollects 
had  endeavored  to  second  the  designs  of  the 
Sieur  de  la  Salle  for  the  glory  of  God  and 
the  sanctification  of  souls  throughout  the 
vast  countries  of  Louisiana,  depending  on 
him  from  Fort  Frontenac,  and  had  accom- 
panied him  on  his  expeditions,  in  which  our 
Father  Gabriel  was  killed,  he  made  it  an 
essential  point  to  take  some  of  our  fathers 
to  labor  in  concert  to  establish  the  kingdom 
of  God  in  these  new  countries.  For  this 
purpose  he  applied  to  the  Rev.  Father  Hya- 
cinth le  Febvre,  who  had  been  twice  provin- 
cial of  our  province  of  St.  Anthony,  in  Ar- 
tois,  and  was  then,  for  the  second  time,  pro- 
vincial of  that  of  St.  Denis,  in  France,  who, 
wishing  to  second  with  all  his  power  the 
pious  intentions  of  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle, 
granted  him  the  religious  he  asked,  namely. 
Father  Zenobius  Membre,  superior  of  the 
mission,  and  Fathers  Maximus  Le  Clercq 
and  Anastasius  Douay,  all  three  of  our 
province  of  St.  Anthony,  the  first  having 
been  for  four  years  the  inseparable  com- 
panion of  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  during  his 
discovery  on  land ;  the  second  had  served 

[*  Father  D'Esmanville,  or  Dainmaville,  was 
sent  instead.] 

207 


JOURNEYS    OF 

for  five  years  with  great  edification  in  Can- 
ada, especially  in  the  mission  of  the  seven 
islands  and  Anticosti.  Father  Denis  Mor- 
guet  was  added  as  a  fourth  priest ;  but  that 
religious  finding  himself  extremely  sick  on 
the  third  day  after  embarking,  he  was 
obliged  to  give  up  and  return  to  his  prov- 
ince. 

The  reverend  father  provincial  had  in- 
formed the  Congregation  de  propaganda 
fide  of  this  mission  to  obtain  necessary  au- 
thority for  the  exercise  of  our  ministry ;  he 
received  decrees  in  due  form,  which  we  will 
place  at  the  end  of  the  chapter,  not  to  inter- 
rupt the  reader's  attention  here.  His  Holi- 
ness Innocent  XI.  added  by  an  express  brief 
authentic  powers  and  permission  in  twenty- 
six  articles,  as  the  Holy  See  is  accustomed 
to  grant  to  missionaries  whose  remoteness 
makes  it  morally  impossible  to  recur  to  the 
authority  of  the  ordinary.  It  was  granted 
against  the  opposition  of  the  Bishop  of  Que- 
bec, Cardinal  d'Estrees  having  shown  that 
the  distance  from  Quebec  to  the  mouth  of 
the  river  was  more  than  eight  or  nine  hun- 
dred leagues  by  land.^ 

The  hopes  that  were  then  justly  founded 

on   this    famous   expedition   induced   many 

'  Similar  opposition  compelled  the  first  Jesuits 
in  Louisiana  to  leave  soon  after  their  arrival  with 
Iberville. 

208 


LA    SALLE 

young  gentlemen  to  join  the  Sieur  de  la 
Salle  as  volunteers ;  he  chose  twelve  who 
seemed  most  resolute,  among  them  the  Sieur 
de  Morange  and  Sieur  Cavelier,  his 
nephews,  the  latter  only  fourteen  years  of 
age. 

The  little  fleet  was  fitted  out  at  Rochelle, 
to  be  composed  of  four  vessels — the  Joly,  a 
royal  ship ;  a  frigate  called  the  Belle,  a  store- 
ship  called  the  Amiable  and  a  ketch  called 
the  St.  Francis.  The  royal  vessel  was  com- 
manded by  Captain  de  Beaujeu,  a  Norman 
gentleman,  known  for  valor  and  experience 
and  his  meritorious  services ;  his  lieutenant 
was  M.  le  Chevalier  d'Aire,  now  captain  in 
the  navy,  and  son  of  the  dean  of  the  Parlia- 
ment of  Metz.  The  Sieur  de  Hamel,  a 
young  gentleman  of  Bruage,  full  of  fire  and 
courage,  was  ensign.  Would  to  God  the 
troops  and  the  rest  of  the  crew  had  been 
as  well  chosen !  Those  who  were  appointed 
while  M.  de  la  Salle  was  at  Paris  picked  up 
a  hundred  and  fifty  soldiers,  mere  wretched 
beggars  soliciting  alms,  many  too  deformed 
and  unable  to  fire  a  musket.  The  Sieur  de 
la  Salle  had  also  given  orders  at  Rochelle 
to  engage  three  or  four  mechanics  in  each 
trade;  the  selection  was,  however,  so  bad 
that  when  they  came  to  the  destination  and 
they  were  set  to  work  it  was  seen  that  they 
209 


JOURNEYS   OF 

knew  nothing  at  all.  Eight  or  ten  families 
of  very  good  people  presented  themselves 
and  offered  to  go  and  begin  the  colonies. 
Their  offer  was  accepted  and  great  advances 
made  to  them,  as  well  as  to  the  artisans  and 
soldiers. 

All  being  ready,  they  sailed  on  the  24th 
of  July,  1684.  A  storm  which  came  on  a 
few  days  later  obliged  them  to  put  in  at 
Chef-de-Bois  to  repair  one  of  their  masts 
broken  in  the  gale.  They  set  sail  again  on 
the  1st  of  August,  steering  for  St.  Domingo. 
But  a  second  storm  overtook  them  and  dis- 
persed them  on  the  14th  of  September.  The 
Amiable  and  the  Belle,  alone  remaining  to- 
gether, reached  Petit  Goave,  in  St.  Do- 
mingo, where  they  fortunately  found  the 
Joly.  The  St.  Francis,  being  loaded  with 
goods  and  effects,  and  unable  to  follow  the 
others,  had  put  in  at  Port  de  Paix,  whence 
she  sailed  after  the  storm  was  over  to  join 
the  fleet  at  the  rendezvous ;  but  as  during 
the  night,  while  quite  calm,  the  captain  and 
crew,  thinking  themselves  in  safety,  were 
perfectly  off  their  guard,  they  were  sur- 
prised by  two  Spanish  periaguas,  which 
took  the  ketch. 

This  was  the  first  mishap  which  befell 
the  voyage,  a  disaster  which  caused  univer- 
sal consternation  in  the  party  and  much 
210 


LA    SALLE 

grief  to  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle,  who  was  just 
recovering  from  a  dangerous  malady,  which 
had  brought  him  to  the  verge  of  the  grave. 
They  stayed,  indeed,  some  time  at  St.  Do- 
mingo, where  they  laid  in  provisions,  a  store 
of  Indian  corn,  and  of  all  kinds  of  domestic 
animals  to  stock  the  new  country.  M.  de 
St.  Laurent,  Governor-General  of  the  isles ; 
Begun,  intendent,  and  De  Cussy,  Governor 
of  St.  Domingo,  favored  them  in  every  way, 
and  even  restored  the  reciprocal  understand- 
ing so  necessary  to  succeed  in  such  under- 
takings ;  but  the  soldiers  and  most  of  the 
crew,  having  plunged  into  every  kind  of  de- 
bauchery and  intemperance,  so  common  in 
those  parts,  were  so  ruined  and  contracted 
with  dangerous  disorders  that  some  died 
in  the  island  and  others  never  recovered. 

The  little  fleet,  thus  reduced  to  three  ves- 
sels, weighed  anchor  November  25th,  1684, 
and  pursued  its  way  successfully  along  the 
Cayman  Isles,  and  passing  by  the  Isle  of 
Peace  (Pines),  after  anchoring  there  a  day 
to  take  in  water,  reached  Port  San  Antonio, 
on  the  Island  of  Cuba,  where  the  three  ships 
immediately  anchored.  The  beauty  and  al- 
lurements of  the  spot  and  its  advantageous 
position  induced  them  to  stay,  and  even 
land.  For  some  unknown  reason  the  Span- 
iards had  abandoned  there  several  kinds  of 
211 


JOURNEYS    OF 

provisions  and,  among  the  rest,  some  Span- 
ish wine,*  which  they  took,  and,  after  two 
days'  repose,  left  to  continue  the  voyage  to 
the  Gulf  of  Mexico. 

The  Sieur  de  la  Salle,  although  very 
clear-headed  and  not  easily  misled,  had, 
however,  too  easily  believed  the  advice 
given  him  by  some  persons  in  St.  Domingo. 
He  discovered,  too  late,  that  all  the  sailing 
directions  given  him  were  absolutely  false; 
the  fear  of  being  injured  by  northerly  winds, 
said  to  be  very  frequent  and  dangerous 
at  the  entrance  of  the  gulf,  made  them  twice 
lie  to;  but  the  discernment  and  courage 
of  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  made  them  try  the 
passage  a  third  time,  and  they  entered  hap- 
pily on  the  1st  of  January,  1685,  when  Fa- 
ther Anastasius  celebrated  a  solemn  mass 
as  a  thanksgiving;  after  which,  continuing 
the  route,  they  arrived  in  fifteen  days  in 
sight  of  the  coast  of  Florida,  when  a  violent 
wind  forced  the  Joly  to  stand  ofif,  the  store- 
ship  and  frigate  coasting  along,  the  Sieur 
de  la  Salle  being  anxious  to  follow  the 
shore. 

He  had  been  persuaded  at  St.  Domingo 
that  the  gulf  stream  ran  with  incredible 
rapidity  toward  the  Bahama  channel.    This 

[*  This  is  contradicted  by  Joutel.  Cf.  Margry 
III.,  113.] 

212 


LA    SALLE 

false  advice  set  him  entirely  astray,  for, 
thinking  himself  much  further  north  than 
he  was,  he  not  only  passed  Espiritu  Santa 
Bay  (Appalachee  [or  Mobile] )  without 
recognizing-  it,  but  even  followed  the 
coast  far  beyond  the  River  Colbert, 
and  would  even  have  continued  to  fol- 
low it,  had  they  not  perceived  by  its 
turning  south,  and  by  the  latitude,  that 
they  were  more  than  forty  or  fifty  leagues 
from  the  mouth,  the  more  so  as  the  river, 
before  emptying  into  the  gulf,  coasts  along 
the  shore  of  the  gulf  to  the  west ;  and,  as 
longitude  is  unknown  to  pilots,  it  proved 
that  he  had  greatly  passed  his  parallel  lines. 
The  vessels  at  last,  in  the  middle  of  Feb- 
ruary [January  19],  met  at  Espiritu  Santo 
Bay,  where  there  was  an  almost  continual 
roadstead.  They  resolved  to  return  whence 
they  came,  and  advanced  ten  or  twelve 
leagues  to  a  bay  which  they  called  St.  Louis 
Bay  (St.  Bernard).  As  provisions  began 
to  fail,  the  soldiers  had  already  landed,  the 
Sieur  de  la  Salle  explored  and  sounded  the 
bay,  which  is  a  league  broad,  with  a  good 
bottom.  He  thought  that  it  might  be  the 
right  arm  of  the  River  Colbert.  He  brought 
the  frigate  in  without  accident  on  the  i8th 
of  February.  The  channel  is  deep,  so  deep, 
in  fact,  that  even  on  the  sand  bar,  which 
213 


JOURNEYS   OF 

in  a  manner  bars  the  entrance,  there  are 
twelve  or  fifteen  feet  of  water  at  low  tide. 

The  Sieur  de  la  Salle  having  ordered  the 
captain  of  the  store-ship  not  to  enter  with- 
out the  pilot  of  the  frigate,  in  whom  he  put 
all  confidence,  to  unload  his  cannon  and 
water  into  the  boats  to  lighten  his  cargo, 
and  lastly,  to  follow  exactly  the  channel 
staked  out ;  none  of  his  orders  were  exe- 
cuted, and  the  faithless  man,  in  spite  of  the 
advice  given  him  by  a  sailor  who  was  at  the 
maintop  to  keep  oflf,  drove  his  vessel  on  the 
shoals,  where  he  touched  and  stranded,  so 
that  it  was  impossible  to  get  ofif.^ 

La  Salle  was  on  the  seashore  when  he 
saw  this  deplorable  maneuver,  and  was  em- 
barking to  remedy  it,  when  he  saw  a  hun- 
dred or  a  hundred  and  twenty  Indians  come. 
He  had  to  put  all  under  arms.  The  roll  of 
the  drum  put  the  savages  to  flight ;  he  fol- 
lowed them,  presented  the  calumet  of  peace, 
and  conducted  them  to  their  camp,  regaled 
them,  and  even  made  them  presents ;  and 
the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  gained  them  so  that 
an  alliance  was  made  with  them.  They 
brought  meat  to  the  camp  the  following 
days;  he  bought  some  of  their  canoes,  and 
there  was  every  reason  to  expect  much  from 
this  necessary  union. 

£"  Cf.  Margry  II.,  556,  599.] 
214 


LA   SALLE 

Misfortune  would  have  it  that  a  bale  of 
blanketing  from  the  wreck  was  thrown  on 
shore.  Some  days  after  a  party  of  Indians 
seized  it.  The  Sieur  de  la  Salle  ordered  his 
men  to  get  it  out  of  their  hands  peaceably ; 
they  did  just  the  contrary;  the  commander 
presented  his  musket  as  if  about  to  fire.  This 
so  alarmed  them  that  they  regarded  us  only 
as  enemies.  Provoked  to  fury,  they  assem- 
bled on  the  night  of  the  6th  and  7th  of 
March  and,  finding  the  sentinel  asleep, 
poured  in  a  destructive  volley  of  arrows. 
Our  men  ran  to  arms ;  the  noise  of  mus- 
ketry put  them  to  flight,  after  they  had 
killed  on  the  spot  the  Sieurs  Oris  and  Des- 
loge,  two  cadet  volunteers,  and  dangerously 
wounded  the  Sieur  de  Moranger,  lieutenant, 
and  nephew  of  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle,  and  the 
Sieur  Gaien,  a  volunteer.  The  next  day 
they  killed  two  more  of  our  men,  whom 
they  found  sleeping  on  the  shore. 

Meanwhile  the  store-ship  remained  more 
than  three  weeks  at  the  place  of  its  wreck, 
without  going  to  pieces,  but  full  of  water; 
they  saved  all  they  could  in  periaguas  and 
boats  when  a  calm  allowed  them  to  reach 
it.  One  day  Father  Zenobius  having  passed 
in  a  boat,  it  was  dashed  to  pieces  against 
the  vessel  by  a  sudden  gust  of  wind.  All 
quickly  got  on  board,  but  the  good  father, 

215 


JOURNEYS   OF 

who  remained  last  to  save  the  rest,  would 
have  been  drowned  had  not  a  sailor  thrown 
him  a  rope,  with  which  he  drew  himself  up 
as  he  was  sinking. 

At  last  Monsieur  de  Beaujeu  sailed  in  the 
Joly,  with  all  his  party,  on  the  I2th  of 
March,  to  return  to  France,  and  the  Sieur 
de  la  Salle,  having  thrown  up  a  house  with 
planks  and  pieces  of  timber,  to  put  his  men 
and  goods  in  safety,  left  a  hundred  men 
under  the  command  of  the  Sieur  de  Mo- 
ranger  and  set  out  with  fifty  others,  the 
Sieur  Cavelier  and  Fathers  Zenobius  and 
Maximus  intending  to  seek  at  the  extremity 
of  the  bay  the  mouth  of  the  river  and  a 
proper  place  to  fix  his  colony." 

The  captain  of  the  frigate  had  orders  to 
sound  the  bay  in  boats  and  to  bring  his  ves- 
sel in  as  far  as  he  could.  He  followed 
twelve  leagues  along  the  coast,  which  runs 
from  southeast  to  northwest,  and  anchored 
opposite  a  point  to  which  the  Sieur  Hurler 
gave  his  name.  He  was  appointed  com- 
mander there,  this  post  serving  as  a  station 
between  the  naval  camp  and  the  one  the 
Sieur  de  la  Salle  went,  on  the  2d  of  April, 
to  form  at  the  extremity  of  the  bay,  two 
leagues   up   a   beautiful    river   called    Cow 

['  Shea,  Estab't  of  Faith  II.,  218,  note,  gives 
an  unfair  picture  of  La  Salle's  actions  at  this 
time.] 

216 


LA   SALLE 

River,  from  the  great  number  of  those  wild 
animals  they  found  there.  Our  people  were 
attacked  there  by  a  party  of  Indians,  but 
repulsed  them. 

On  the  2 1  St,  holy  Saturday,  the  Sieur  de 
la  Salle  came  to  the  naval  camp,  where  the 
next  day  and  the  three  following  those  great 
festivals  were  celebrated  with  all  possible 
solemnity,  each  one  receiving  his  Creator. 
The  following  days  all  the  effects,  and  gen- 
erally all  that  could  be  of  service  to  the  camp 
of  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle,  were  transferred 
from  those  of  the  Sieurs  de  Moranger  and 
Hurier,  which  were  destroyed.  For  a  month 
the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  made  them  work  in 
cultivating  the  ground  ;  but  neither  the  grain 
nor  the  vegetables  sprouted,  either  because 
they  were  damaged  by  the  salt  water  or  be- 
cause, as  was  afterward  remarked,  it  was 
not  the  right  season.  The  fort,^  which  was 
built  in  an  advantageous  position,  was  soon 
in  a  state  of  defense,  furnished  with  twelve 
pieces  of  cannon,  and  a  magazine  under- 
ground, for  fear  of  fire,  in  which  all  the  ef- 
fects were  safely  deposited.  The  maladies 
which  the  soldiers  had  contracted  at  St.  Do- 
mingo were  visibly  carrying  them  oflF,  and 
a  hundred  died  in  a  few  days,  notwithstand- 
ing all  the  relief  afforded  by  broths,  pre- 

[^  Cf.  Shea,  Ibid.,  219.] 
217 


JOURNEYS  OF 

serves,  treacle  and  wine  which  were  given 
them. 

On  the  9th  of  August,  1685,  three  of  our 
Frenchmen,  being  at  the  chase,  which  is 
plentiful  in  these  parts  in  all  kinds  of  game 
and  deer,  were  surrounded  by  several  troops 
of  armed  savages ;  but  our  men,  putting 
themselves  on  the  defensive,  first  killed  the 
chief  and  scalped  him.  This  spectacle  terri- 
fied and  scattered  the  enemy,  who,  neverthe- 
less, some  time  after  surprised  and  killed 
one  of  our  Frenchmen. 

On  the  13th  of  October  the  Sieur  de  la 
Salle,  seeing  himself  constantly  insulted  by 
the  savages,  and  wishing,  moreover,  to  have 
some  of  their  canoes,  by  force  or  consent,  as 
he  could  not  do  without  them,  resolved  to 
make  open  war  on  them  in  order  to  bring 
them  to  an  advantageous  peace. 

Ke  set  out  with  sixty  men,  armed  with 
wooden  corselets  to  protect  them  against 
arrows,  and  arrived  where  they  had  gath- 
ered. In  different  engagements,  by  day  and 
night,  he  put  some  to  flight,  wounded  sev- 
eral, killed  some ;  others  were  taken,  among" 
the  rest  some  children,  one  of  whom,  a  girl, 
three  or  four  years  old,  was  baptized,  and 
died  some  days  after,  as  the  first  fruits  of 
this  mission  and  a  sure  conquest  sent  to 
heaven.  The  colonists  now  built  houses  and 
218 


LA   SALLE 

formed  fields  by  clearing  the  ground,  the 
grain  sowed  succeeding  better  than  the  first. 
They  crossed  to  the  other  side  of  the  bay 
in  canoes,  and  found  on  a  large  river  a  plen- 
tiful chase,  especially  of  cattle  and  turkeys. 
In  the  fort  they  raised  all  kinds  of  domestic 
animals,  cows,  hogs  and  poultry,  which  mul- 
tiplied greatly.^  Lastly,  the  execution  done 
among  the  Indians  had  rendered  the  little 
colony  somewhat  more  secure,  when  a  new 
misfortune  succeeded  all  the  preceding. 

The  Sieur  de  la  Salle  had  ordered  the 
captain  of  the  frigate  to  sound  the  bay  care- 
fully as  he  advanced  and  to  recall  all  his 
men  on  board  at  nightfall ;  but  this  captain 
and  six  of  his  strongest,  stoutest  and  ablest 
men,  charmed  with  the  agreeableness  of  the 
season  and  the  beauty  of  the  country,  left 
their  canoe  and  arms  on  the  sand  at  low 
water  and  advanced  a  gunshot  on  the  plain 
to  be  dry.  Here  they  fell  asleep,  and  an 
Indian  party,  espying  them,  surprised  them, 
aided  by  their  sleep  and  the  darkness,  mas- 
sacred them  cruelly  and  destroyed  their 
arms  and  canoe.  This  tragical  adventure 
produced  the  greatest  consternation  in  the 
camp. 

After  rendering  the  last  honors  to  the 
murdered  men  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle,  leaving 

[•  This  is  denied  by  Joutel.    Sec  Vol.  II.,  p.  61.I 
219 


JOURNEYS   OF 

provisions  for  six  months,  set  out  with 
twenty  men  and  his  brother,  the  Sieur  Cava- 
lier, to  seek  the  mouth  of  the  river  (Missis- 
sippi) by  land.  The  bay,  which  he  discov- 
ered to  be  in  latitude  27°  45'  N.,  is  the  out- 
let of  a  great  number  of  rivers,  none  of 
which,  however,  seemed  large  enough  to  be 
an  arm  of  the  River  Colbert.  The  Sieur  de 
la  Salle  explored  them  in  hope  that  a  part 
of  these  rivers  was  formed  further  up  by 
one  of  the  branches  of  the  said  river,  or,  at 
least,  that  by  traversing  the  country  to  some 
distance,  he  would  make  out  the  course  of 
the  Mississippi.  He  was  longer  absent  than 
he  had  expected,  being  compelled  to  make 
rafts  to  cross  the  rivers  and  to  intrench  him- 
self every  night  to  protect  himself  against 
attacks.  The  continual  rains,  too,  formed 
ravines  and  destroyed  the  roads.  At  last, 
on  the  13th  of  February,  1686,  he  thought 
that  he  had  found  the  river.^  He  fortified 
himself  there,  left  a  part  of  his  men,  and 
with  nine  others  continued  to  explore  a 
most  beautiful  country,  traversing  a  number 
of  villages  and  nations,  who  treated  him 
very  kindly.  At  last,  returning  to  find  his 
people,  he  arrived  at  the  general  camp  on 
the  31st  of  May  [March],  charmed  with  the 

'  Of  course,  he  was  mistaken,  but  cf.  Margry 
III.,  545,  and  Cavelier's  Account,  Vol.  I.,  page  276. 
220 


LA    SALLE 

"beauty  and  fertility  of  the  fields,  the  incred- 
ible quantity  of  game  of  every  kind  and  the 
numerous  tribes  he  had  met  on  the  way.^° 

The  Almighty  was  preparing  him  a  still 
more  sensible  trial  than  the  preceding  in  the 
loss  of  his  only  remaining  vessel,  in  which 
he  hoped  to  coast  along  and  then  pass  to  St. 
Domingo,  to  send  news  to  France  and  ob- 
tain new  succor.  This  sad  accident  hap- 
pened from  want  of  precaution  on  the  part 
of  the  pilot.  All  the  goods  were  lost  irre- 
coverably ;  the  vessel  struck  on  the  shore, 
the  sailors  were  drowned ;  the  Sieur  de 
Chefdeville,  the  captain,  and  four  others, 
with  difficulty,  escaped  in  a  canoe  which 
they  found  almost  miraculously  on  the 
shore.  They  lost  thirty-six  barrels  of  flour, 
a  quantity  of  wine,  the  trunks,  clothes,  linen, 
equipage  and  most  of  the  tools.  We  leave 
the  reader  to  imagine  the  grief  and  afflic- 
tion felt  by  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  at  an  acci- 
dent which  completely  ruined  all  his  meas- 
ures. His  great  courage  even  could  not 
have  borne  him  up  had  not  God  aided  his 
virtue  by  the  help  of  extraordinary  grace. 

All  these  measures  being  thus  discon- 
certed and  his  affairs  brought  to  extremes, 
he  resolved  to  try  to  reach  Canada  by  land. 

'"  For  Tonty's  movements  during  this  same  pe- 
riod cf.  Vol.  I.,  page  34. 

221 


JOURNEYS   OF 

He  returned  some  time  after  and  undertook 
a  second,  in  which  he  lost  his  life  by  the 
cruelty  of  his  men,  some  of  whom-,  remain- 
ing faithful,  continued  their  route  and 
reached  France,  among  the  rest  Father  An- 
astasius  Douay.  Although  the  detail  of  his 
remarks  was  lost  in  his  many  wrecks,  the 
following  is  an  abridgment  of  what  he  could 
gather  from  them,  with  which,  perhaps,  the 
reader  will  be  better  pleased  than  if  I  gave 
it  in  my  own  style. 


CHAPTER  X. 

NARRATIVE  OF  LA  SALLE's  ATTEMPT  TO  AS- 
CEND THE  MISSISSIPPI  IN  1687,  BY 
FATHER  ANASTASIUS  DOUAY,  RECOL- 
LECT.^ 

[part  L   to  the  DEATH   OF  LA   SALLE.] 

The  Sieur  de  la  Salle,  seeing  no  other 
resource  for  his  affairs  but  to  go  by  land 
to  the  llinois,  to  be  able  to  give  in  France 

^  Of  Father  Anastasius  Douay  we  know  little; 
Hennepin  makes  him  a  native  of  Quesnoy,  in 
Hainault.  He  had  never  been  in  America  before, 
but  after  being  connected  with  La  Salle's  expedi- 
tion from  1684  to  1688,  he  reached  France,  as  we 
shall  see,  in  safety.  He  was,  says  Hennepin,  vicar 
of  the  Recollects  of  Cambray  in  1697.  Certain 
It  is  that  he  subsequently  revisited  America  in 
1699  with  Iberville,  but  we  can  trace  him  no  fur- 
2.22 


LA    SALLE 

tidings  of  his  disasters,  chose  twenty  of  his 
best  men,  including  Nika,  one  of  our  Shaw- 
nee Indians,  who  had  constantly  attended 
him  from  Canada  to  France,  and  from 
France  to  Mexico.  Monsieur  Cavelier,  the 
Sieur  de  Morenget  and  I  also  joined  them 
for  this  great  journey,  for  which  we  made 
no  preparation  but  four  pounds  of  powder 
and  four  of  lead,  two  axes,  two  dozen 
knives,  as  many  awls,  some  beads  and 
two  kettles.  After  celebrating  the  divine 
mysteries  in  the  chapel  of  the  fort,  and  in- 
voking together  the  help  of  heaven,  we  set 
out  on  the  22d  [13th,  28th]  of  April,  1686, 
in  a  northeasterly  direction. 

On  the  third  day  we  perceived  in  some 
of  the  finest  plains  in  the  world  a  number 
of  people,  some  on  foot,  others  on  horse- 
back; these  came  galloping  toward  us, 
booted  and  spurred  and  seated  on  saddles. 
They  invited  us  to  their  town,  but  as  they 
were  six  leagues  to  the  northwest,  out  of 
our  route,  we  thanked  them,  after  learning 
in  conversation  that  they  had  intercourse 
with  the  Spaniards.  Continuing  our  march 
the  rest  of  the  day,  we  cabined  at  night  in  a 

ther.  A  man  of  observation  and  ability,  he  seems 
to  have  been  quite  sweeping  in  his  charges,  as 
we  shall  observe  in  the  course  of  his  narrative. 
The  only  point  against  him  besides  this,  which 
was  an  excess  of  party  feeling,  was  his  share  in 
the  deception  practiced  on  Tonty. 
223 


JOURNEYS    OF 

little  intrenched  stockade  fort,  to  be  beyond 
reach  of  insult;  this  we  always  after  prac- 
ticed, with  good  results. 

Setting  out  the  next  morning,  we  marched 
for  two  days  through  continual  prairies  to 
the  river  which  we  called  Robek,^  meeting 
everywhere  so  prodigious  a  quantity  of  Ci- 
bola, or  wild  cattle,  that  the  smallest  herds 
seemed  to  us  to  contain  two  or  three  hun- 
dred. We  killed  nine  or  ten  in  a  moment 
and  dried  a  part  of  the  meat,  so  as  not  to 
have  to  stop  for  five  or  six  days.  A  league 
and  a  half  further  we  met  another  and  finer 
river,  wider  and  deeper  than  the  Seine  at 
Paris,  skirted  by  some  of  the  finest  trees  in 
the  world,  set  as  regularly  as  though  they 
had  been  planted  by  man.  Among  them 
were  many  mulberry  and  other  fruit  trees. 
On  one  side  were  prairies,  on  the  other 
woods.  We  passed  it  on  rafts,  and  called 
it  La  Maligne  [Colorado?]. 

Passing  through  this  beautiful  country, 
its  delightful  fields  and  prairies,  skirted 
with  vines,  fruit  trees  and  groves,  we,  a  few 
days  after,  reached  a  river,  which  we  called 
Hiens  [St.  Bernard],  after  a  German  from 
Wittemburg,  who  got  so  fast  in  the  mud 
that  he  could  scarcely  get  out.    One  of  our 

['  The  Colorado,  Lavaca  and  St.  Bernard  have 
all  been  suggested.] 

224 


LA    SALLE 

men,  with  an  axe  on  his  back,  swam  over 
to  the  other  side ;  a  second  followed  at  once  ; 
they  then  cut  down  the  largest  trees,  while 
others  on  our  side  did  the  same.  These 
trees  were  cut  so  as  to  fall  on  each  side  into 
the  river,  where,  meeting,  they  formed  a 
kind  of  bridge,  on  which  we  easily  passed. 
This  invention  we  had  recourse  to  more 
than  thirty  times  in  our  journeys,  finding 
it  surer  than  the  Cajeu,  which  is  a  kind  of 
raft  formed  of  many  pieces,  and  branches 
tied  together,  on  which  we  passed  over, 
guiding  it  by  a  pole. 

Here  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  changed  his 
route  from  northeast  to  east,  for  reasons 
which  he  did  not  tell  us,  and  which  we  could 
never  discover. 

After  several  days'  march  in  a  pretty  fine 
country,  crossing  ravines  on  rafts,  we  en- 
tered a  much  more  agreeable  and  perfectly 
delightful  territory,  where  we  found  a  very 
numerous  tribe,  who  received  us  with  all 
possible  friendship,  even  the  women  coming 
to  embrace  our  men.  They  made  us  sit 
down  on  well-made  mats  at  the  upper  end, 
near  the  chiefs,  who  presented  us  the  calu- 
met adorned  with  feathers  of  every  hue, 
which  we  had  to  smoke  in  turn.  They 
served  up  to  us,  among  other  things,  a  sa- 
gamity,  made  of  a  kind  of  root  called  Toque, 
225 


JOURNEYS    OF 

or  Toquo.  It  is  a  shrub,  like  a  kind  of 
bramble  without  thorns,  and  has  a  very 
large  root,  which  they  wash  and  dry  per- 
fectly, after  which  it  is  pounded  and  reduced 
to  powder  in  a  mortar.  The  sagamity  has  a 
good  taste,  though  astringent.  These  In- 
dians presented  us  with  some  cattle  skins, 
very  neatly  dressed,  to  make  shoes ;  we  gave 
them  in  exchange  beads,  which  they  esteem 
highly.  During  our  stay  the  Sieur  de  la 
Salle  so  won  them  by  his  manners  and  in- 
sinuated so  much  of  the  glory  of  our  King, 
telling  them  that  he  was  greater  and  higher 
than  the  sun,  that  they  were  all  ravished 
with  astonishment. 

The  Sieur  Cavelier  and  I  endeavored 
here,  as  everywhere  else,  to  give  them  some 
first  knowledge  of  the  true  God.  This  na- 
tion is  called  Biskatronge,  but  we  called 
them  the  nation  of  weepers,^  and  gave  their 
beautiful  river  the  same  name,  because  at 
our  arrival  and  entrance  they  all  began  to 
weep  bitterly  for  a  good  quarter  of  an  hour. 
It  is  their  custom  when  they  see  any  who 
come  from  afar,  because  it  reminds  them 
of  their  deceased  relatives,  whom  they  sup- 
pose on  a  long  journey,  from  which  they 
await  their  return.     These  good  people,  in 

'  Cabeza  de  Vaca  from  the  same  circumstance 
gives  a   similar  name  to  a  tribe  in  that  quarter. 
[See  edition  by  Bandelier  in  this  series,  p.  72.] 
220 


LA    SALLE 

conclusion^  gave  us  guides,  and  we  passed 
their  river  in  their  periaguas. 

We  crossed  three  or  four  others  the  fol- 
lowing days  without  any  incident  of  note, 
except  that  our  Shawnee,  firing  at  a  deer 
pretty  near  a  large  village,  so  terrified  them 
all  by  the  report  that  they  took  to  flight. 
The  Sieur  de  la  Salle  put  all  under  arms 
to  enter  the  village,  which  consisted  of  three 
hundred  cabins.  We  entered  the  largest, 
that  of  the  chief,  where  we  found  his  wife 
still,  unable  to  fly  from  old  age.  The  Sieur 
de  la  Salle  made  her  understand  that  we 
came  as  friends.  Three  of  her  sons,  brave 
warriors,  observed  at  a  distance  what 
passed,  and,  seeing  us  to  be  friendly,  re- 
called all  their  people.  We  treated  of  peace, 
and  the  calumet  was  danced  till  evening, 
when  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle,  not  trusting 
them  overmuch,  went  and  encamped  be- 
yond the  canes,  so  that,  if  the  Indians  ap- 
proached by  night,  the  noise  of  the  canes 
would  prevent  our  being  surprised. 

This  showed  his  discernment  and  pru- 
dence, for  during  the  night  a  band  of  war- 
riors, armed  with  arrows,  approached;  but 
the  Sieur  de  la  Salle,  without  leaving  his 
entrenchment,  threatened  to  thunder  his 
guns ;  and,  in  a  word,  spoke  so  boldly  and 
firmly  that  he  obliged  them  to  draw  off. 
227 


JOURNEYS    OF 

After  their  retreat  the  night  passed  off 
quietly,  and  the  next  day,  after  reciprocal 
marks  of  friendship,  apparent,  at  least,  on 
the  side  of  the  Indians,  we  pursued  our 
route  to  five  or  six  leagues  beyond.  Here 
we  were  agreeably  surprised  to  find  a  party 
of  Indians  come  out  to  meet  us  with  ears  of 
corn  in  their  hands  and  a  polished,  honest 
air.  They  embraced  us,  inviting  us  most 
pressingly  to  go  and  visit  their  villages.  The 
Sieur  de  la  Salle,  seeing  their  sincerity, 
agreed.  Among  other  things,  these  Indians 
told  us  that  they  knew  whites  toward  the 
west,  a  cruel,  wicked  nation,  who  depeopled 
the  country  around  them.  (These  were  the 
Spaniards.)  We  told  them  that  we  were 
at  war  with  that  people.  When  the  news 
of  this  spread  through  the  village,  called 
that  of  the  Kironas,  all  vied  with  each  other 
in  welcoming  us,  pressing  us  to  stay  and  go 
to  war  with  the  Spaniards  of  Mexico.  We 
put  them  off  with  fair  words,  and  made  a 
strict  alliance  with  them,  promising  to  re- 
turn with  more  numerous  troops.  Then, 
after  many  feasts  and  presents,  they  carried 
us  over  the  river  in  periaguas. 

As  we  constantly  held  on  our  way  to  the 
east,  through  beautiful  prairies,  a  misfor- 
tune befell  us  after  three  days'  march.    Our 
Indian    hunter,  Nika,  suddenly    cried    out 
228 


LA    SALLE 

with  all  his  might,  "I  am  dead!"  We  ran 
up  and  learned  that  he  had  been  cruelly  bit- 
ten by  a  snake ;  this  accident  stopped  us  for 
several  days.  We  gave  him  some  orvietan 
and  applied  viper's  salt  on  the  wound,  after 
scarifying  it  to  let  out  the  poison  and  tainted 
blood.    He  was  at  last  saved. 

Some  days  after  we  had  many  other 
alarms.  Having  reached  a  large  and  rapid 
river,  which  we  were  told  ran  to  the  sea, 
and  which  we  called  Misfortune  *  River  we 
made  a  raft  to  cross.  The  Sieur  de  la  Salle 
and  Cavelier,  with  a  part  of  our  people,  got 
on;  but  scarcely  had  they  got  into  the  cur- 
rent, when  by  its  violence  it  carried  them  off 
with  incredible  rapidity,  so  that  they  disap- 
peared almost  instantly.  I  remained  ashore 
with  a  part  of  our  men ;  our  hunter  was  ab- 
sent, having  been  lost  for  some  days.  It 
was  a  moment  of  extreme  anguish  for  us 
all,  who  despaired  of  ever  again  seeing  our 
guardian  angel,  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle.  God 
vouchsafed  to  inspire  me  constantly  with 
courage,  and  I  cheered  up  those  who  re- 
mained as  well  as  I  could.  The  whole  day 
was  spent  in  tears  and  weeping,  when  at 
nightfall  we  saw  on  the  opposite  brink  La 
Salle  with  all  his  party.  We  now  learned 
that  by  an  interposition  of  Providence  the 

[*  Probably  the  Brazos.] 
229 


JOURNEYS    OF 

raft  had  been  stopped  by  a  large  tree  float- 
ing in  the  middle  of  the  river.  This  gave 
them  a  chance  to  make  an  effort  and  get  out 
of  the  current,  which  would  otherwise  have 
carried  them  out  to  sea.  One  of  his  men 
sprang  into  the  water  to  catch  the  branch 
of  a  tree,  and  then  was  unable  to  get  back  to 
the  raft.  He  was  a  Breton  named  Rut ;  but 
he  soon  after  appeared  on  our  side,  having 
swam  ashore. 

The  night  was  spent  in  anxiety,  thinking 
how  we  should  find  means  to  pass  to  the 
other  side  to  join  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle. 
We  had  not  eaten  all  day,  but  Providence 
provided  for  us  by  letting  two  eagles  fall 
from  a  cedar  tree.  We  were  ten  at  his 
meal.      , 

The  next  day  we  had  to  pass ;  the  Sieur 
de  la  Salle  advised  us  to  make  a  raft  of 
canes.  The  Sieur  Moranget  and  I,  with 
three  others,  led  the  way,  not  without  dan- 
ger, for  we  went  under  every  moment,  and 
I  was  obliged  to  put  our  breviary  in  our 
cowl,  because  it  got  wet  in  the  sleeve.  The 
Sieur  de  la  Salle  sent  two  men  to  swim 
out  and  help  us  push  the  canes  in,  and  they 
brought  us  safely  in.  Those  who  remained 
on  the  other  side  did  not  at  all  like  risking 
it,  but  they  had  to  do  it  at  last,  on  our  mak- 
ing show  of  packing  up  and  continuing 
230 


LA    SALLE 

our  march  without  them ;  they  then  crossed 
at  less  hazard  than  we. 

The  whole  troop,  except  the  hunter,  being 
now  assembled,  we  for  two  days  traversed  a 
thick  cane-brake,  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  cut- 
ting his  way  with  two  axes,  and  the  others 
in  like  manner,  to  break  the  canes.  At  last, 
on  the  third  day,  our  hunter,  Nika,  came 
in,  loaded  with  three  dried  deer  and  another 
just  killed.  The  Sieur  de  la  Salle  ordered 
a  discharge  of  several  guns  to  show  our  joy. 

Still  marching  east,  we  entered  countries 
still  finer  than  those  we  had  passed,  and 
found  tribes  that  had  nothing  barbarous  but 
the  name ;  among  others,  we  met  a  very 
honest  Indian  returning  from  the  chase  with 
his  wife  and  family.  He  presented  the  Sieur 
de  la  Salle  with  one  of  his  horses  and  some 
meat,  invited  him  and  all  his  party  to  his 
cabin,  and,  to  induce  us,  left  his  wife,  fam- 
ily and  game  as  a  pledge,  while  he  hastened 
to  the  village  to  announce  our  coming.  Our 
hunter  and  a  servant  of  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle 
accompanied  him,  so  that  two  days  after 
they  returned  to  us  with  two  horses  loaded 
with  provisions,  and  several  chiefs,  followed 
by  warriors  very  neatly  attired  in  dressed 
skins  adorned  with  feathers.  They  came 
on  bearing  the  calumet  ceremoniously  and 
met  us  three  leagues  from  the  village;  the 
231 


JOURNEYS    OF 

Sieur  de  la  Salle  was  received  as  if  in  tri- 
umph and  lodged  in  the  great  chief's  cabin. 
There  was  a  great  concourse  of  people,  the 
young  men  being  drawn  out  and  under 
arms,  relieving  one  another  night  and  day, 
and,  besides,  loading  us  with  presents  and 
all  kinds  of  provisions.  Nevertheless,  the 
Sieur  de  la  Salle,  fearing'lest  some  of  his 
party  might  go  after  the  women,  encamped 
three  leagues  from  the  village.  Here  we 
remained  three  or  four  days  and  bought 
horses  and  all  that  we  needed. 

This  village,  that  of  the  Ccenis  [Sp.  Asi- 
nalsj,  is  one  of  the  largest  and  most  popu- 
lous that  I  have  seen  in  America.  It  is  at 
least  twenty  leagues  long,  not  that  it  is  con- 
stantly inhabited,  but  in  hamlets  of  ten  or 
twelve  cabins,  forming  cantons,  each  with 
a  different  name.  Their  cabins  are  fine, 
forty  or  fifty  feet  high,  of  the  shape  of  bee- 
hives. Trees  are  planted  in  the  ground  and 
united  above  the  branches,  which  are  cov- 
ered with  grass.  The  beds  are  ranged 
around  the  cabin,  three  or  four  feet  from 
the  ground ;  the  fire  is  in  the  middle,  each 
cabin  holding  two  families. 

We  found  among  the  Coenis  many  things 
which  undoubtedly  came  from  the  Span- 
iards, such  as  dollars  and  other  pieces  of 
money,  silver  spoons,  lace  of  every  kind, 
232 


LA    SALLE 

clothes  and  horses.  We  saw,  among  other 
things,  a  bull  from  Rome  exempting  the 
Spaniards  in  Mexico  from  fasting  during 
summer.^  Horses  are  common ;  they  gave 
them  to  us  for  an  axe ;  one  Coenis  offered 
me  one  for  our  cowl,  to  which  he  took  a 
fancy. 

They  have  intercourse  with  the  Spaniards 
through  the  Choiimans  [Comanches],  their 
allies,  who  are  always  at  war  with  New 
Spain.  The  Sieur  de  la  Salle  made  them 
draw  on  bark  a  map  of  their  country,  of  that 
of  their  neighbors,  and  of  the  River  Colbert, 
or  Mississippi,  with  which  they  are  ac- 
quainted. They  reckoned  themselves  six 
days'  journey  from  the  Spaniards,  of  whom 
they  gave  us  so  natural  a  description  that 
we  no  longer  had  any  doubts  on  the  point, 
although  the  Spaniards  had  not  yet  under- 
taken to  come  to  their  villages,  their  war- 
riors merely  joining  the  Choiimans  to  go 
war  on  New  Mexico.  The  Sieur  de  la  Salle, 
who  perfectly  understood  the  art  of  gain- 
ing the  Indians  of  all  nations,  filled  these 
with  admiration  at  every  moment.  Among 
other  things,  he  told  them  that  the  chief  of 

"  Certain  Mexican  writers  used  these  statements 
and  those  of  similar  import  given  by  Cavelier 
(Chap.  XII.,  XIII.)  as  evidence  to  strengthen 
Spanish  claims  to  Texas.  Cf.  Historia  43.  Opus- 
cule Cuba  VI.,  Archive  General. 

233 


JOURNEYS    OF 

the  French  was  the  greatest  chief  in  the 
world,  as  high  as  the  sun,  and  as  far  above 
the  Spaniard  as  the  sun  is  above  the  earth. 
On  his  recounting  the  victories  of  our  mon- 
arch they  burst  into  exclamations,  putting 
their  hand  on  their  mouth  as  a  mark  of  as- 
tonishment. I  found  them  very  docile  and 
tractable,  and  they  seized  well  enough  what 
we  told  them  of  the  truth  of  God. 

There  were  then  some  Choiiman  ambas- 
sadors among  them,  who  came  to  visit  us. 
I  was  agreeably  surprised  to  see  them  make 
the  sign  of  the  cross,  kneel,  clasp  their 
hands,  and  raise  them  from  time  to  time  to 
heaven.  They  also  kissed  my  habit,  and 
gave  me  to  understand  that  men  dressed 
like  us  instructed  tribes  in  their  vicinity, 
who  were  only  two  days'  march  from  the 
Spaniards,  where  our  religious  had  large 
churches,  in  which  all  assembled  to  pray. 
They  expressed  very  naturally  the  ceremo- 
nies of  the  mass ;  one  of  them  sketched  me 
a  painting  that  he  had  seen  of  a  great  lady, 
who  was  weeping  because  her  son  was  upon 
a  cross.  He  told  us  that  the  Spaniards 
butchered  the  Indians  cruelly,  and,  finally, 
that  if  we  would  go  with  them,  or  give  them 
guns,  they  could  easily  conquer  them,  be- 
cause they  were  a  cowardly  race,  who  had 
no  con '■age,  and  made  people  walk  before 
234 


LA    SALLE 

them  with  a  fan  to  refresh  them  in  hot 
weather. 

After  remaining  here  four  or  five  days  to 
recruit,  we  pursued  our  route  through  the 
Nassonis,  crossing  a  large  river  which  inter- 
sects the  great  Coenis  village.®  These  two 
nations  are  allies  and  have  nearly  the  same 
character  and  customs. 

Four  or  five  leagues  from  there  we  had 
the  mortification  to  see  that  four  of  our  men 
had  deserted  under  cover  of  night  and  re- 
tired to  the  Nassonis ;  and,  to  complete  our 
chagrin,  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  and  his 
nephew,  the  Sieur  de  Moranget,  were  at- 
tacked with  a  violent  fever,  which  brought 
them  to  extremity.  Their  illness  was  long 
and  obliged  us  to  make  a  long  stay  at  this 
place,  for  when  the  fever,  after  frequent  re- 
lapses, left  them  at  last,  they  required  a  long 
time  to  recover  entirely. 

The  length  of  this  sickness  disconcerted 
all  our  measures,  and  was  eventually  the 
cause  of  the  last  misfortunes  which  befell 
us.  It  kept  us  back  more  than  two  months, 
during  which  we  had  to  live  as  we  could ; 
our  powder  began  to  run  out;  we  had  not 
advanced  more  than  a  hundred  and  fifty 
leagues  in  a  straight  line,  and  some  of  our 
people  had  deserted.     In  so  distressing  a 

['  Perhaps  the  Trinity  or  Neches.] 
235 


JOURNEYS    OF 

crisis  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  resolved  to  re- 
trace his  steps  to  Fort  [St.?]  Louis;  all 
agreed,  and  we  straightway  resumed  our 
route,  during  which  nothing  happened 
worth  note  but  that,  as  we  repassed  the 
Maligne,  one  of  our  men  was  carried  off 
with  his  raft  by  a  crocodile  of  prodigious 
length  and  bulk. 

After  a  good  month's  march,  in  which  our 
horses  did  us  good  service,  we  reached  the 
camp  on  the  17th  of  October  [or  August], 
in  the  same  year,  1686,  where  we  were  wel- 
comed with  all  imaginable  cordiality,  but, 
after  all,  with  feelings  tinged  alike  with  joy 
and  sadness  as  each  related  the  tragical  ad- 
ventures which  had  befallen  both  since  we 
had  parted. 

It  would  be  difficult  to  find  in  history 
courage  more  intrepid  or  more  invincible 
than  that  of  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle ;  in  adver- 
sity he  was  never  cast  down,  and  always 
hoped  with  the  help  of  heaven  to  succeed 
in  his  enterprises,  despite  all  the  obstacles 
that  rose  against  it  [them] . 

He  remained  two  months  and  a  half  at 
Saint  Louis  Bay,  and  we  visited  together 
all  the  rivers  which  empty  into  it.  To  my 
own  knowledge,  I  am  sure  that  there  are 
more  than  fifty,  all  navigable,  coming  from 
the  west  and  northwest ;  the  place  where  the 
236 


LA   SALLE 

fort  stands  is  somewhat  sandy ;  everywhere 
else  the  ground  is  good.  On  every  side  we 
saw  prairies  on  which  the  grass  is,  at  all 
seasons  of  the  year,  higher  than  wheat  with 
us.  Every  two  or  three  leagues  is  a  river 
skirted  with  oaks,  thorn,  mulberry  and  other 
trees.  This  kind  of  country  is  uniform  until 
within  two  days'  march  of  the  Spaniards. 

The  fort  is  built  on  a  little  eminence 
which  runs  north  and  south ;  it  has  the  sea 
on  the  southwest,  vast  prairies  to  the  west, 
and  on  the  southwest  [  ?]  two  small  lakes 
and  woods  a  league  in  circuit ;  a  river  flows 
at  its  foot.  Tlie  neighboring  nations  are  the 
Quoanquis,  who  raise  Indian  corn  and  have 
horses  cheap;  the  Bahamos  [Bracamos, 
Ebahamos]  and  the  Ouinets,  wandering 
tribes,  with  whom  we  are  at  war.  During 
this  time  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  forgot  noth- 
ing to  console  his  little  infant  colony,  in 
which  the  families  began  to  increase  by 
births.  He  advanced  greatly  the  clearing 
of  land  and  the  erection  of  buildings ;  the 
Sieur  de  Chefdeville,  priest ;  the  Sieur  Cav- 
elier  and  we  three  Recollects  laboring  in 
concert  for  the  edification  of  the  French  and 
of  some  Indian  families  who  withdrew  from 
the  neighboring  nations  to  join  us.'^     Dur- 

['Joutel  denies  that  Indians  joined  them.  See 
Vol.  II.,  page  88.] 

^Z7 


JOURNEYS    OF 

ing  all  this  time  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  did 
his  utmost  to  render  the  Indians  less  hostile, 
peace  with  them  being  of  the  utmost  conse- 
quence for  the  establishment  of  the  colony. 

At  last  Monsieur  de  la  Salle  resolved  to 
resume  his  Illinois  voyage,  so  necessary  for 
his  plans.  He  made  an  address  full  of  elo- 
quence, with  that  engaging  way  so  natural 
to  him ;  the  whole  colony  was  present,  and 
were  almost  moved  to  tears,  persuaded  of 
the  necessity  of  his  voyage  and  the  upright- 
ness of  his  intentions.  Would  to  God  that 
all  had  persevered  in  these  sentiments !  He 
completed  the  fortification  of  a  great  enclo- 
sure, encircling  all  the  habitations  and  the 
fort,  after  which  he  chose  twenty  men — the 
Sieur  Cavelier,  his  brother,  the  Sieurs  Mo- 
ranget  and  Cavelier,  his  nephews,  with  the 
Sieur  Joutel,®  pilot  and  myself.  After  pub- 
lic prayers,  we  set  out  on  the  7th  of  January, 
1687.°' 

The  very  first  day  we  met  an  army  of 
Bahamos  going  to  war  with  the  Erigoanna; 
the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  made  an  alliance  with 

*Joutel  was  not  in  the  previous  excursion  of 
the  Cenis,  of  which  the  missionary's  is  the  only 
account. 

["For  the  fate  of  those  colonists  left  at  Ft.  St. 
Louis  cf.  Margry  III.,  609-622.  Quar.  Tex.  Hist. 
Ass'n  II.,  253-312;  v.,  171-205.  Bandelier,  A.  F., 
Expedition  of  Pedro  de  l^illazur  in  Papers  of  the 
ArchcBoligiccLl  Institute  of  America,  Series  V.] 
238 


LA   SALLE 

them.  He  wished,  also,  to  treat  with  the 
Quinets,  who  fled  at  our  approach ;  but, 
having  overtaken  them  by  means  of  our 
horses,  we  treated  them  so  kindly  that  they 
promised  an  inviolable  peace. 

The  fourth  day,  three  leagues  further  to 
the  northeast,  we  came  to  the  first  Cane 
River.  Our  route  lay  through  prairies, 
with  scattered  groves ;  the  soil  is  so  good 
that  the  grass  grows  ten  or  twelve  feet 
high.  There  are  on  this  river  many  popu- 
lous villages ;  we  visited  only  the  Quaras 
[Kouaras]  and  the  Anachoremas. 

In  the  same  direction,  three  leagues  fur- 
ther, we  came  to  the  second  Cane  River 
[Colorado?],  inhabited  by  various  tribes; 
here  we  found  fields  of  hemp. 

Five  leagues  further  we  passed  the  Sandy 
River  [La  Sablonniere] ,  so  called  from  the 
sandy  strip  along  it,  though  all  the  rest  is 
good  land  and  vast  prairies. 

We  marched  seven  or  eight  leagues  to 
Robec  River  [see  note  2,  page  224]  passing 
through  prairies  and  over  three  or  four 
rivers,  a  league  from  one  another.  Robec 
River  has  many  populous  villages,  where  the 
people  have  a  language  so  guttural  that  it 
would  require  a  long  time  to  form  ourselves 
to  it.  They  are  at  war  with  the  Spaniards, 
and  pressed  us  earnestly  to  join  their  war- 
239 


JOURNEYS   OF 

riors,  but  there  was  no  hope  of  keeping  us. 
We  stayed,  however,  five  or  six  days  with 
them,  endeavoring  to  gain  them  by  presents 
and  Christian  instruction,  a  thing  they  do 
not  get  from  the  Spaniards. 

Continuing  our  route,  we  crossed  great 
prairies  to  the  Malignc  [Brazos?].  This 
deep  river,  where  one  of  our  men  had  been 
devoured  by  a  crocodile,  comes  from  a  great 
distance,  and  is  inhabited  by  forty  populous 
villages,  which  compose  a  nation  called  the 
Quanoatinno ;  they  make  war  on  the  Span- 
iards and  lord  it  over  the  neighboring  tribes. 
We  visited  some  of  these  villages. ^°  They 
are  a  good  people,  but  always  savage,  the 
cruelty  of  the  Spaniards  rendering  them 
still  more  fierce.  As  they  found  us  of  a 
more  tractable  nature,  they  were  charmed 
with  our  nation ;  but  after  these  mutual 
presents  we  had  to  part.  They  gave  us 
horses  cheap  and  carried  us  over  their  river 
in  hide  canoes. 

In  the  same  direction,  after  four  leagues 
of  similar  land,  extremely  fertile, we  crossed 
Hiens  River  on  rafts ;  then  turning  north- 
northeast,  we  had  to  cross  a  number  of  little 
rivers  and  ravines,  navigable  in  winter  and 
spring.  The  land  is  diversified  with  prairies, 

^"Joutel  says  they  merely  heard  of  the  Cano- 
hatino,  and  calls  them  afterward  enemies  of  the 
Cenis. 

240 


LA    SALLE 

hills  and  numerous  springs.  Here  we  found 
three  large  villages,  the  Taraha,  Tyakappan 
and  Palona,  who  have  horses.  Some  leagues 
further  on  we  came  to  the  Palaquesson/^ 
composed  of  ten  villages,  allies  of  the  Span- 
iards. 

After  having  passed  these  nations  the 
most  disheartening  of  all  our  misfortunes 
overtook  us.  It  was  the  murder  of  Mon- 
sieur de  la  Salle,  of  the  Sieur  de  Mcranget 
and  of  some  others.  Our  prudent  com- 
mander, finding  himself  in  a  country  full  of 
gamie,  after  all  the  party  had  recruited  and 
lived  for  several  days  on  every  kind  of  good 
meat,  sent  the  Sieur  Moranget,  his  lackey, 
Saget,  and  seven  or  eight  of  his  people  to  a 
place  where  our  hunter,  the  Shawnee  Nika, 
had  left  a  quantity  of  buffalo  meat  (boeuf) 
to  dry,  so  as  not  to  be  obliged  to  stop  so 
often  to  hunt. 

The  wisdom  of  Monsieur  de  la  Salle  had 
not  been  able  to  foresee  the  plot  which  some 
of  his  people  would  make  to  slay  his 
nephew,  as  they  suddenly  resolved  to  do, 
and  actually  did  on  the  17th  of  March  by  a 
blow  of  an  axe,  dealt  by  one  whom  charity 

"  According  to  Joutel,  Hist.  Coll.  of  Louisiana, 
Vol.  I.,  p.  147,  [Vol.  II.,  page  107],  Palaquechaune 
was  an  Indian,  whose  tribe  were  allies  of  the 
Cenis,  and  who  knew  the  Choumans,  the  friends 
of  the  Spaniards. 

241 


JOURNEYS    OF 

does  not  permit  me  to  name  (Liotot).  They 
also  killed  the  valet  of  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle 
and  the  Indian  Nika,  who,  at  the  risk  of  his 
life,  had  supported  them  for  more  than  three 
years.  The  Sieur  de  Moranget  lingered 
for  about  two  hours,  giving  every  mark  of 
a  death  precious  in  the  sight  of  God,  par- 
doning his  murderers  and  embracing  them, 
and  making  acts  of  sorrow  and  contrition, 
as  they  themselves  assured  us,  after  they 
recovered  from  their  unhappy  blindness. 
He  was  a  perfectly  honest  man  and  a  good 
Christian,  confessing  every  week  or  fort- 
night on  our  march.  I  have  every  reason  to 
hope  that  God  has  shown  him  mercy. 

The  wretches  resolved  not  to  stop  here, 
and,  not  satisfied  with  this  murder,  formed 
a  design  of  attempting  their  commander's 
life,  as  they  had  reason  to  fear  his  resent- 
ment and  chastisement.  We  were  full  two 
leagues  off.  The  Sieur  de  la  Salle,  troubled 
at  the  delay  of  the  Sieur  de  Moranget  and 
his  people,  from  whom  he  had  been  sepa- 
rated now  for  two  or  three  days,  began  to 
fear  that  they  had  been  surprised  by  the  In- 
dians. Asking  me  to  accompany  him,  he 
took  two  Indians  and  set  out.  All  the  way 
he  conversed  with  me  of  matters  of  piety, 
grace  and  predestination,  expatiating  on  all 
his  obligations  to  God  for  having  saved  him 
242 


LA    SALLE 

from  so  many  dangers  during  the  last 
twenty  years  that  he  had  traversed  America. 
He  seemed  to  be  pecuHarly  penetrated  with 
a  sense  of  God's  benefits  to  him.  Suddenly 
I  saw  him  plunged  into  a  deep  melancholy, 
for  which  he  himself  could  not  account ;  he 
was  so  troubled  that  I  did  not  know  him 
any  longer.  As  this  state  was  far  from 
being  usual,  I  roused  him  from  his  lethargy. 
Two  leagues  after  we  found  the  bloody 
cravat  of  his  lackey ;  he  perceived  two  eagles 
flying  over  his  head,  and  at  the  same  time 
discovered  some  of  his  people  on  the  edge 
of  the  river,  which  he  approached,  asking 
them  what  had  become  of  his  nephew.  They 
answered  us  in  broken  words,  showing  us 
where  we  should  find  him.  We  proceeded 
some  steps  along  the  bank  to  the  fatal  spot, 
where  two  of  these  murderers  were  hidden 
in  the  grass,  one  on  each  side,  with  guns 
cocked ;  one  missed  Monsieur  de  la  Salle, 
the  one  [other]  firing  at  the  same  time,  shot 
him  in  the  head.  He  died  an  hour  after,  on 
the  19th  of  March,  1687. 

I  expected  the  same  fate,  but  this  danger 
did  not  occupy  my  thoughts,  penetrated  with 
grief  at  so  cruel  a  spectacle.  I  saw  him 
fall  a  step  from  me,  with  his  face  full  of 
blood.  I  watered  it  with  my  tears,  exhort- 
ing him,  to  the  best  of  my  power,  to  die 
243 


JOURNEYS    OF 

well.  He  had  confessed  and  fulfilled  his 
devotions  just  before  we  started.  He  had 
still  time  to  recapitulate  a  part  of  his  life, 
and  I  gave  him  absolution.  During"  his  last 
moments  he  elicited  all  the  acts  of  a  good 
Christian,  grasping  my  hand  at  every  word 
I  suggested,  and  especially  at  that  of  par- 
doning his  enemies.  Meanwhile  his  mur- 
derers, as  much  alarmed  as  I,  began  to  strike 
their  breasts  and  detest  their  blindness.  I 
could  not  leave  the  spot  where  he  had  ex- 
pired without  having  him  buried  as  well  as 
1  could,  after  which  I  raised  a  cross  over  his 
grave.  ^^ 

Thus  died  our  wise  commander,  constant 
in  adversity,  intrepid,  generous,  engaging, 
dexterous,  skillful,  capable  of  everything. 
He  who  for  twenty  years  had  softened  the 
fierce  temper  of  countless  savage  tribes,  was 
massacred  by  the  hands  of  his  own  domes- 
tics, whom  he  had  loaded  with  caresses.  He 
died  in  the  prime  of  life,  in  the  midst  of  his 
course  and  labors,  without  having  seen  their 
success. 

Occupied  with  these  thoughts,  which  he 

"This  and  the  circumstances  of  Moranget's 
death  are  denied  by  Joutel.  [See  Vol.  II.,  page 
Ii8.  The  spot  where  La  Salle  was  inurdert-d  i.-> 
usually  supposed  to  be  a  southern  branch  of  the 
Trinity.  Hennepin,  New  Disc' y  (T  wa  tes,  ed.), 
II.,  426.] 

244 


LA    SALLE 

had  himself  a  thousand  times  suggested  to 
us  while  relating  the  events  of  the  new  dis- 
coveries, I  unceasingly  adored  the  inscrut- 
able designs  of  God  in  this  conduct  of  His 
providence,  uncertain  still  what  fate  He  re- 
served for  us,  as  our  desperadoes  plotted 
nothing  less  than  our  destruction.  We  at 
last  entered  the  place  where  Monsieur  Cava- 
lier was  ;  the  assassins  entered  the  cabin  un- 
ceremoniously and  seized  all  that  was  there. 
I  had  arrived  a  moment  before  them ;  I  had 
no  need  to  speak,  for  as  soon  as  he  beheld 
my  countenance,  all  bathed  in  tears,  the 
Sieur  Cavelier  exclaimed  aloud,  "Ah!  my 
poor  brother  is  dead !"  This  holy  ecclesi- 
astic, whose  virtue  has  been  so  often  tried 
in  the  apostolic  labors  of  Canada,  fell  at 
once  on  his  knees ;  the  nephew,  the 
Sieur  Cavelier,  myself  and  some  others 
did  the  same,  to  prepare  to  die  the 
same  death ;  but  the  wretches,  touched 
by  some  sentiments  of  compassion  at 
the  sight  of  the  venerable  old  man,  and, 
besides,  half  penitent  for  the  murders  they 
had  committed,  resolved  to  spare  us,  on  con- 
dition that  we  should  never  return  to 
France ;  but  as  they  were  still  undecided, 
and  many  of  them  wished  to  return  home, 
we  heard  them  often  say  that  they  must  get 
rid  of  us ;  that  otherwise  we  would  accuse 
245 


JOURNEYS   OF 

them  before  the  tribunals  if  we  once  had 
them  in  the  kingdom. 

They  elected  as  chief,  the  murderer  of 
Sieur  de  la  Salle  (Duhaut),  and  at  last, 
after  many  deliberations,  resolved  to  push 
on  to  that  famous  nation  of  the  Ccenis.  Ac- 
cordingly, after  marching  together  for  sev- 
eral days,  crossing  rivers  and  rivers,  every- 
where treated  by  these  wretches  as  servants, 
having  nothing  but  what  they  left,  we 
reached  the  tribe  without  accident. 

Meanwhile  the  justice  of  God  accom- 
plished the  punishment  of  these  men,  in  de- 
fault of  human  justice.  Jealousy  and  de- 
sire of  command  arose  between  Hiens  and 
the  Sieur  de  la  Salle's  murderer ;  each  one 
of  the  guilty  band  sided  on  one  side  or  the 
other.  We  had  passed  the  Coenis,  after 
some  stay  there,  and  were  already  at  the 
Nassonis,  where  the  four  deserters,  whom 
I  mentioned  in  the  first  expedition,  rejoined 
us.  On  the  eve  of  Ascension,  seeing  all  to- 
gether, and  our  wretches  resolved  to  kill 
each  other,  I  made  them  an  exhortation  on 
the  festival,  at  which  they  seemed  affected, 
and  resolved  to  confess ;  but  this  did  not 
last.  Those  who  most  regretted  the  murder 
of  their  commander  and  leader  had  sided 
with  Hiens,  who,  seeing  his  opportunity 
two  days  after,  sought  to  punish  crime  by 
246 


LA    SALLE 

crime.  In  our  presence  he  shot  the  mur- 
derer of  La  Salle  through  the  heart  with  a 
pistol.  He  died  on  the  spot,  unshriven,  un- 
able even  to  utter  the  names  of  Jesus  and 
Mary.  Another  who  was  with  Hiens  shot 
the  murderer  of  the  Sieur  de  Moranget 
(Liotot)  in  the  side  with  a  musket  ball.  He 
had  time  to  confess,  after  which  a  French- 
man fired  a  blank  cartridge  at  his  head.  His 
hair,  and  then  his  shirt  and  clothes  took 
iire  and  wrapped  him  in  flames,  and  in  this 
torment  he  expired.  The  third  author  of 
the  plot  and  murder  fled.  Hiens  wished  to 
make  way  with  him  and  thus  completely 
avenge  the  death  of  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle, 
but  the  Sieur  Joutel  conciliated  them  and  it 
stopped  there. ^^ 

By  this  means  Hiens  remained  chief  of 
the  wretched  band.  We  had  to  return  to 
Coenis,  where  they  had  resolved  to  settle, 
not  daring  to  return  to  France  for  fear  of 
punishment. 

"  This  was  Larcheveque,  Hist.  Coll.  of  Louisi- 
ana, Vol.  I.,  p.  158.  With  Grollet,  who  had  de- 
serted from  La  Salle  on  his  first  excursion,  he 
surrendered  to  a  Spanish  party  under  Don  Alonzo 
de  Leon.  See  extract  from  the  Ensayo  Crono- 
logico.  Shea,  Disco'y  and  Explo.  of  the  Miss., 
208,  note. 


247 


JOURNEYS    OF 


CHAPTER  XI. 

DOUAY^S  NARRATIVE,   PART  II.      THE  RETURN 
TO    FRANCE. 

A  CcENis  army  was  ready  to  march 
against  the  Kanoatino,  a  hostile  tribe,  cruel 
to  their  enemies,  whom  they  boil  alive.  The 
Ccenis  took  our  Frenchmen  with  them,  after 
which  Hiens  pressed  us  strongly  to  remain 
with  them,  but  we  would  not  consent.  Six 
of  us,  all  French,  accordingly  set  out  from 
the  Coenis,  among  whom  were  the  Sieurs 
Cavelier,  uncle  and  nephew,  and  the  Sieur 
Joutel.  They  gave  us  each  a  horse,  powder 
and  lead,  and  some  goods  to  pay  our  way. 
We  stopped  at  the  Nassonis  to  celebrate  the 
octave  of  Corpus  Christi.  They  spoke  to 
us  daily  of  the  cruelty  of  the  Spaniards  to 
the  Americans,  and  told  us  that  twenty  In- 
dian nations  were  going  to  war  against  the 
Spaniards,  inviting  us  to  join  them,  as  we 
would  do  more  with  our  guns  than  all  their 
braves  with  their  war  clubs  and  arrows; 
but  we  had  very  dififerent  designs.  We 
only  took  occasion  to  tell  them  that  we  came 
on  behalf  of  God  to  instruct  them  in  the 
truth  and  save  their  souls.  In  this  we  spent 
ten  or  twelve  days,  till  the  3d  of  June,  the 
248 


LA   SALLE 

feast  of  St.  Anthony  of  Padua,  whom  the 

Sieur  de  la  Salle  had  taken  as  patron  of  his 

enterprise. 

Having  received  two  Indians  to  guide  us, 

we    continued    our    way    north-northeast, 

through  the  finest  country  in  the  world.  We 

passed  four  large  rivers  and  many  ravines, 

inhabited   by  many   different   nations ;   we 

reconnoitred  the  Haquis,  on  the  east;  the 

Nabiri  and  Naansi,  all  numerous  tribes,  at 

war  with  the  Coenis,  and  at  last,  on  the  23d 

of  June,  we  approached  the  Caddodacchos.^ 

One  of  our  Indians  went  on  to  announce 

our  coming ;  the  chiefs  and  youth,  whom  we 

met  a  league  from  the  village,  received  us 

with  the  calumet,   which  they  gave  us  to 

smoke;  some  led  our  horses  by  the  bridle; 

others,  as  it  were,  carried  us  in  triumph, 

*  These  were  doubtless  the  Caddoes,  a  tribe 
which  is  not  yet  extinct.  According  to  Joutel, 
Hist.  Coll.  of  Louisiana,  Vol.  I.,  p.  168,  the  tribe 
consisted  of  four  allied  villages — Assony,  Natho- 
sos,  Nachitos  and  Cadodaquio.  Tonty  describes 
them  as  forming  three  villages,  Cadodaquis,  Na- 
chitoches  and  Nasoui,  all  on  the  Red  River,  and 
speaking  the  same  language.  Two  of  these  tribes, 
the  Nasoui  and  Nachitoches,  bear  a  strong  re- 
semblance to  the  tribes  found  by  Muscoso,  the 
successor  of  De  Soto,  in  the  same  vicinity,  and 
called  by  Biedma,  Nissione  (Hist.  Coll.  of  Louisi- 
ana, Vol.  III.,  p.  107),  and  by  the  gentleman  of 
Elvas,  Nissoone  and  Naquiscoza,  while  the  Day- 
cao,  as  their  river  is  called,  is  not  incompatible 
with  Cado-Daquio. — Hist.  Coll.  of  Louisiana,  Vol. 
III.,  p.  201.  [Cf.  Bourne,  De  Soto  I.,  175,  178, 
180;  II.,  36.] 

249 


JOURNEYS    OF 

taking  us  for  spirits  and  people  of  another 
world. 

All  the  village  being  assembled,  the 
women,  as  is  their  wont,  washed  our  head 
and  feet  with  warm  water,  and  then  placed 
us  on  a  platform  covered  with  a  very  neat, 
white  mat ;  then  followed  banquets,  calumet- 
dances  and  other  public  rejoicings,  day  and 
night.  The  people  knew  the  Europeans 
only  by  report ;  like  other  tribes  through 
which  we  had  passed,  they  have  some  very 
confused  ideas  of  religion  and  adore  the 
sun ;  their  gala  dresses  bear  two  painted 
suns ;  on  the  rest  of  the  body  are  repre- 
sentations of  buffalo,  stags,  serpents  and 
other  animals.  This  afforded  us  an  oppor- 
tunity to  give  them  some  lessons  on  the 
knowledge  of  the  true  God  and  on  our  prin- 
cipal mysteries. 

At  this  place  it  pleased  God  to  traverse 
lis  by  a  tragical  accident.  The  Sieur  de 
Marne,  in  spite  of  all  that  we  could  say, 
went  to  bathe  on  the  evening  of  the  24th; 
the  younger  Sieur  Cavelier  accompanied 
him  to  the  river  side,  quite  near  the  village. 
De  Marne  sprang  into  the  water  and  imme- 
diately disappeared.  It  was  an  abyss,  where 
he  was  in  a  moment  swallowed  up.  A  few 
hours  afterward  his  body  was  recovered  and 
brought  to  the  chief's  cabin.  All  the  village 
250 


LA    SALLE 

mourned  his  death  with  all  ceremony;  the 
chief's  wife  herself  neatly  wound  him  in  a 
beautiful  cloth,  while  the  younp;  men  dug 
the  grave,  which  I  blessed  the  next  day, 
when  we  buried  him  with  all  possible  sol- 
emnity. The  Indians  admired  our  ceremo- 
nies, from  which  we  took  occasion  to  give 
them  some  instruction  during  the  week  that 
we  remained  in  this  fatal  place.  Our  friend 
was  interred  on  an  eminence  near  the  vil- 
lage and  his  tomb  surrounded  by  a  palisade, 
surmounted  by  a  large  cross,  which  we  got 
the  Indians  to  raise,  after  which  we  started 
on  the  2d  of  July. 

This  tribe  is  on  the  banks  of  a  large  river, 
on  which  lie  three  more  famous  nations,  the 
Natchoos,  the  Natchites,  [and?]  the  Ouid- 
iches,  where  we  were  very  hospitably  re- 
ceived. From  the  Coenis  River,  where  we 
began  to  find  beaver  and  otter,  they  became 
very  plentiful  as  we  advanced.  At  the  Ouid- 
iches  we  met  three  warriors  of  two  tribes 
called  theCahinnioand  the  Mentous,  twenty- 
five  leagues  further  east-northeast,  who  had 
seen  Frenchmen.  They  offered  to  guide  us 
there,  and  on  our  way  we  passed  four  rivers 
on  rafts.  We  were  received  with  the  calumet 
of  peace  and  every  mark  of  joy  and  esteem.^ 

*Joutel  calls  this  village  Cahaynahoua.  See 
Joutel's  journal  published  in  French's  Hist.  Coll. 


JOURNEYS    OF 

Many  of  these  Indians  spoke  to  us  of  a  great 
captain,  who  had  only  one  arm  (this  was 
Monsieur  de  Tonty),  whom  they  had  seen, 
and  who  told  them  that  a  greater  captain 
than  he  would  pass  through  their  village. 
This  was  Monsieur  de  la  Salle. 

The  chief  lodged  us  in  his  cabin,  from 
which  he  made  his  family  retire.  We  were 
here  regaled  for  several  days  on  every  kind 
of  meat ;  there  was  a  public  feast,  where  the 
calumet  was  danced  for  twenty-four  hours, 
with  songs  made  for  the  occasion,  which  the 
chief  intoned  with  all  his  might,  treating  us 
as  people  of  the  sun,  who  came  to  defend 
them  from  their  enemies  by  the  noise  of  our 
thunder.  Amidst  these  rejoicings  the 
younger  Cavelier  fired  his  pistol  three  times, 
crying  "Vive  le  roi!"  which  the  Indians  re- 
peated loudly,  adding,  "Vive  la  soleil!" 
These  Indians  have  prodigious  quantities 
of  beaver  and  otter  skins,  which  could  be 
easily  transported  by  a  river  near  the  vil- 
lage. They  wished  to  load  our  horses  with 
them,  but  we  refused,  to  show  our  disinter- 
estedness. We  made  them  presents  of  axes 
and  knives,  and  set  out  with  two  Cahinnio 
to  act  as  guides,  after  having  received  em- 
bassies from  Analao  and  Tanico  and  other 

of  Louisiana,  Vol.  I.,  pp.  85-193.     [Also  Vol.  II., 
p.  170.] 

252 


LA   SALLE 

tribes  to  the  northwest  and  southeast.  It 
was  dehghtful  to  traverse  for  several  days 
the  finest  country,  intersected  by  many 
rivers,  prairies,  Httle  woods  and  vine-clad 
hills.  Among  others,  we  passed  four  large 
navigable  rivers,  and  at  last,  after  a  march 
of  about  sixty  leagues,  we  reached  the  Osot- 
teoez,  who  dwell  on  the  great  river  which 
comes  from  the  northwest,  skirted  by  the 
finest  woods  in  the  world.  Beaver  and  otter 
skins  and  all  kinds  of  peltries  are  so  abund- 
ant there  that,  being  of  no  value,  they  burn 
them  in  heaps.  This  is  the  famous  river  of 
the  Achansa,  who  here  form  several  vil- 
lages. At  this  point  we  began  to  know 
where  we  were,  and  finding  a  large  cross, 
bearing  below  the  royal  arms,  with  a 
French-looking  house,  our  people  dis- 
charged their  guns.  Two  Frenchmen  at 
once  came  forth,  and  the  one  in  command, 
by  name  Coutiire,  told  us  that  the  Sieur  de 
Tonty  had  stationed  them  there  to  serve  as 
an  intermediate  station  to  the  Sieur  de  la 
Salle,  to  maintain  an  alliance  with  those 
tribes  and  to  shield  them  against  attacks  by 
the  Iroquois.  We  visited  three  of  these  vil- 
lages, the  Torimans,  the  Doginga  and  the 
Kappa ;  everywhere  we  had  feasts,  ha- 
rangues, calumet-dances,  with  every  mark 
of  joy.  We  lodged  at  the  French  house, 
253 


JOURNEYS    OF 

where  the  two  gentlemen  treated  us  with 
all  desirable  hospitality,  putting  all  at  our 
disposal.  Whenever  any  affairs  are  to  be 
decided  among  these  nations  they  never  give 
their  resolution  on  the  spot ;  they  assemble 
the  chiefs  and  old  men  and  deliberate  on  the 
point  in  question.  We  had  asked  a  periagua 
and  Indians  to  ascend  the  River  Colbert, 
and  thence  to  push  on  to  the  Illinois  by  the 
River  Seignelay,  offering  to  leave  them  our 
horses,  powder  and  lead.  When  the  coun- 
cil was  held  it  was  said  that  they  would 
grant  us  the  periagua  and  four  Indians,  to 
be  selected  one  from  each  tribe,  in  token  of 
a  more  strict  alliance.  This  was  faithfully 
executed,  so  that  we  dismissed  our  Cahinnio 
with  presents  which  perfectly  satisfied  them. 
At  last,  after  some  time  stay,  we  em- 
barked on  the  1st  of  August,  1687,  on  the 
River  Colbert,  which  we  crossed  the  same 
day  in  our  periagua,  forty  feet  long;  but, 
as  the  current  is  strong,  we  all  landed  to 
make  the  rest  of  our  journey  on  foot,  hav- 
ing left  our  horses  and  equipage  at  the 
Akansa.  There  remained  in  the  canoe  only 
the  Sieur  Cavelier,  whose  age,  joined  to  the 
hardships  he  had  already  undergone  on  the 
way,  did  not  permit  him  to  accomplish  on 
foot  the  rest  of  our  course  (at  least  four 
hundred  leagues)  to  the  Illinois.  One  Indian 
254 


LA   SALLE 

was  in  the  canoe  to  perch  it  along,  one  of 
his  comrades  relieving  him  from  time  to 
time.  As  for  the  rest  of  us,  we  used  the 
periagua  only  when  necessary  to  cross  some 
dangerous  passages  or  rivers.  All  this  was 
not  without  much  suffering,  for  the  exces- 
sive heat  of  the  season,  the  burning  sand, 
the  broiling  sun,  heightened  by  a  want  of 
provisions  for  several  days,  gave  us  enough 
to  endure. 

We  had  already  traveled  two  hundred 
and  fifty  leagues  across  the  country  from 
St.  Louis  Bay,  viz. :  one  hundred  leagues  to 
the  Coenis  (sixty  north-northeast,  the  last 
forty  east-northeast)  ;  from  the  Coenis  to  the 
Nassonis,  twenty-five  to  the  east-northeast ; 
from  the  Nassonis  to  the  Cadodacchos,  forty 
to  the  north-northeast ;  from  the  Cadodac- 
chos to  the  Cahinnio  and  Mentous,  twenty- 
five  to  the  east-northeast ;  from  the  Cahin- 
nio to  the  Akansa,  sixty  to  the  east-north- 
east. 

We  then  continued  our  route,  ascending 
the  river  through  the  same  places  which  the 
Sieur  de  la  Salle  had  previously  passed 
when  he  made  his  first  discovery,  of  which 
I  have  heard  him  frequently  speak,  except 
that  we  went  to  the  Sicacha,  where  he  had 
not  been.  The  principal  village  is  twenty- 
five  leagues  east  of  the  Akansa.  This  na-« 
255 


JOURNEYS   OF 

tion  is  very  numerous ;  they  count  at  least 
four  thousand  warriors ;  liave  an  abundance 
of  every  kind  of  peltry.  The  chiefs  came 
several  times  to  offer  us  the  calumet,  wish- 
ing to  form  an  alliance  with  the  French  and 
put  themselves  under  their  protection,  of- 
fering even  to  come  and  dwell  on  the  River 
Oiiabache  (Ohio),  to  be  nearer  to  us. 

We  crossed  the  Oiiabache,  then,  on  the 
26th  of  August,  and  found  it  full  sixty 
days'  good  march 

This  famous  river  is  full  as  large  as  the 
River  Colbert,  receiving  a  quantity  of 
others  by  which  you  can  enter  it.  Tlie 
mouth,  where  it  empties  into  the  River  Col- 
bert, is  two  hundred  leagues  from  the 
Akansa,  according  to  the  estimate  of  the 
Sieur  de  la  Salle,  as  he  often  told  me ;  or 
two  hundred  and  fifty,  according  to  Mon- 
sieur de  Tonty  and  those  who  accompanied 
him  in  his  second  voyage  to  the  sea ;  not  that 
it  is  that  distance  in  a  straight  line  across 
the  prairies,  but  following  the  river,  which 
makes  great  turns  and  winds  a  great  deal, 
for  by  land  it  would  not  be  more  than  five 
leagues  to  the  mouth  of  the  River  Ilinois, 
still  ascending  the  Colbert.  About  six 
leagues  above  this  mouth  there  is  on  the 
northwest  the  famous  river  of  the  Mas- 
sourites,  or  Osages,  at  least  as  large  as  the 
256 


LA    SALLE 

river  into  which  it  empties ;  it  is  formed  by 
a  number  of  other  known  rivers,  every- 
where navigable,  and  inhabited  by  many 
populous  tribes — as  the  Panimaha,  who  had 
but  one  chief  and  twenty-two  villages,  the 
least  of  which  has  two  hundred  cabins ;  the 
Paneassa,  the  Pana,  the  Paneloga  [Paw- 
nees?] and  the  Matotantes  [Ottoes?],  each 
of  which,  separately,  is  not  inferior  to  the 
Panimaha,  They  include,  also,  the  Osages, 
who  have  seventeen  villages  on  a  river  of 
their  name,  which  empties  into  that  of  the 
Massourites,  to  which  the  maps  have  also 
extended  the  name  of  Osages.  The  Akan- 
sas  were  formerly  stationed  on  the  upper 
part  of  one  of  these  rivers  [the  Ohio] ,  but 
the  Iroquois  drove  them,  out  by  cruel  wars 
some  years  ago,  so  that  they,  with  some 
Osage  villages,  were  obliged  to  drop  down 
and  settle  on  the  river  which  now  bears 
their  name,  and  of  which  I  have  spoken. 

About  midway  between  the  River  Oua- 
bache  and  that  of  the  Massourites  is  Cape 
St.  Anthony.  It  was  to  this  place  only,  and 
not  further,  that  the  Sieur  Joliet  descended 
in  1673  5  t^^y  were  there  taken,  with  their 
whole  party,  by  the  Mansopela.  These  In- 
dians having  told  them  that  they  would  be 
killed  if  they  went  further,  they  turned 
back,  not  having  descended  lower  than 
257 


JOURNEYS   OF 

thirty  or  forty  leagues  below  the  mouth  of 
the  Ilinois  River.^ 

I  had  brought  with  me  the  printed  book 
of  this  pretended  discovery,  and  I  remarked 
all  along  my  route  that  there  was  not  a  word 
of  truth  in  it.  It  is  said  that  he  went  as  far 
as  the  Akansa,  and  that  he  was  obliged  to 
return  for  fear  of  being  taken  by  the  Span- 
iards; and  yet  the  Akansa  assured  us  that 
they  had  never  seen  any  Europeans  before 
Monsieur  de  la  Salle.  It  is  said  that  they 
saw  painted  monsters  that  the  boldest  would 
have  difficulty  to  look  at,  and  that  there  was 
something  supernatural  about  them.  This 
frightful  monster  is  a  horse  painted  on  a 
rock  with  matachia.*  and  some  other  wild 
beasts  made  by  the  Indians.  It  is  said  that 
they  cannot  be  reached,  yet  I  touched  them 
without  difficulty.  The  truth  is  that  the 
Miamis,  pursued  by  the  Mat  si  game  a,  hav- 
ing been  drowned  in  the  river,  the  Indians 
ever  since  that  time  present  tobacco  to  these 
grotesque  figures  whenever  they  pass,  in 
order  to  appease  the  Manitou. 

I  would  not  be  inclined  to  think  that  the 
Sieur  Joliet  avowed  the  printed  account  of 
that  discovery,  which  is  not,  in  fact,  under 
his  name,  and  was  not  published  till  after 

P  No  authoritj^  for  this  statement.] 
An  old  term  for  paint  used  by  the  Indians. 
258 


LA    SALLE 

the  first  discovery  made  by  the  Sieur  de  la 
Salle.  It  would  be  easy  to  show  that  it  was 
printed  only  on  false  memoirs,  which  the 
author,  who  had  never  been  on  the  spot, 
might  have  followed  in  good  faith.^ 

'  In  this  short  passage  a  heavy  charge  is 
brought  against  the  narrative  of  Father  Mar- 
quette, although  it  is  amusing  to  see  how  they 
all,  in  denying  it,  seem  to  have  dreaded  to  men- 
tion his  name,  as  though  his  injured  spirit  would 
have  been  evoked  by  the  word. 

As  Father  Anastasius  says  expressly  that  there 
is  not  a  word  of  truth  in  it,  we  may  examine  the 
grounds  which  he  adduces. 

1st.  It  was  not  published  till  after  the  discov- 
ery made  by  La  Salle.  This  is  incorrect.  Theve- 
not  published  Marquette's  journal  from  a  muti- 
lated copy  in  1681,  and  La  Salle  reached  the 
mouth  of  the  Mississippi  only  in  April,  1682, 
while  his  discovery  was  not  known  in  France  be- 
fore January,  1683. 

2d.  The  Arkansas  said  that  they  had  never  seen 
any  European  before  La  Salle.  Making  every 
allowance  for  the  difficulty  of  conversing  with  a 
tribe  whose  language  was  utterly  unknown  to 
him,  and  admitting  the  fact,  it  remains  to  show 
that  the  Arkansas  whom  he  met  were  the  same 
as  those  visited  by  Marquette.  This  does  not 
appear  to  be  certain,  as  they  were  on  different 
sides  of  the  Mississippi. 

3d.  The  painted  rock,  of  which  he  exaggerates 
and  refutes  Marquette's  account.  Now,  though 
Father  Anastasius  had  the  book  of  the  pretended 
discovery  in  his  hand,  he  did  not  read  it  care- 
fully. Marquette  describes  a  rock  above  the  mouth 
of  the  Missouri,  Anastasius  saw  another  below 
the  mouth,  and  halfway  between  it  and  the  Ohio, 
and,  as  it  did  not  answer  Marquette's  account, 
there  is  not  a  word  of  truth  in  his  book!  Joutel, 
whose  work  appeared  only  in  1713,  avoids  this 
difficulty;    whether    conscious    of   Douay's    error, 


JOURNEYS    OF 

At  last,  on  the  5th  of  September,  we  ar- 
rived at  the  mouth  of  the  lUinois  River, 
whence    they    reckon    at    least    a    hundred 

we  do  not  know.  From  the  words  of  Father  An- 
astasius  I  am  inclined  to  think  that  they  never 
saw  Marquette's  rock,  but,  deceived  bj'  Theve- 
not's  map,  which  gives  a  figure  and  the  word 
Manitou  at  the  place  below  the  Missouri,  which 
Marquette  mentions  as  the  demon  of  the  Illi- 
nois, mistook  it  for  the  painted  rock.  Here,  as 
Father  Anastasius  tells,  some  Indians  actually 
perished,  and  their  countrymen,  supposing  them 
engulfed  by  some  demon,  propagated  the  belief 
in  the  existence  of  one  there.  This  worshipping 
of  rapids  was  common,  and  several  cases  are 
mentioned  in  the  narratives  of  the  time.  As  to 
the  exaggerations  made  of  Marquette's  account, 
a  moment's  examination  will  show  that  he  repre- 
sented the  figures  he  saw  as  terrible  to  supersti- 
tious Indians,  and  so  high  up  on  the  rock  that 
it  was  not  easy  to  get  up  there  to  paint  them. 
His  estimate  of  the  skill  displayed  is,  indeed,  too 
high ;  but  there  is  nothing,  beyond  this,  strange  in 
his  account. 

4th.  Last  of  all  comes  his  positive  assertion 
that  Marquette  and  Joliet  went  only  as  far  as 
Cape  St.  Anthony,  thirty  or  forty  leagues  below 
the  mouth  of  the  Illinois.  For  this  he  gives  no 
authority ;  but  it  may  be  inferred  that  he  found 
the  Mansopelas  there,  and,  from  his  little  knowl- 
edge of  the  Indians,  concluded  that,  being  there 
in  1687,  they  must  have  been  there  in  1673,  and, 
consequently,   that  Marquette  went  no  further. 

Enough,  however,  is  here  admitted  to  convict 
the  author  of  the  Etablissemcnt  dc  la  Foi  of  in- 
justice to  Marquette,  whom  he  never  names,  but 
who,  even  by  their  own  statements,  descended 
the  Mississippi  to  the  Mansopelas  many  years  be- 
fore La  Salle's  expedition.  Yet  in  the  previous 
part  of  the  work  no  mention  at  all  is  made  of  this 
voyage,  and  no  opportunity  passed  to  treat  it  as 
pretended  in  the  accounts  of  their  own. 

Joutel,  whose  narrative  was  published  subse- 
260 


LA    SALLE 

leagues  to  Fort  Crevecceur,  the  whole  route 
presenting  a  very  easy  navigation.  A  Shaw- 
nee named  Turpin,  having  perceived  us 
from  his  village,  ran  on  to  the  fort  to  carry 
the  news  to  the  Sieur  de  Belle  Fontaine,  the 
commander,  who  would  not  credit  it;  we 
followed  close  on  the  Indian  and  entered 
the  fort  on  the  14th  of  September.  We 
were  conducted  to  the  chapel,  where  the  Te 
Deum  was  chanted  in  thanksgiving,  amid 
the  noise  and  volleys  of  the  French  and  In- 
dians, who  were  immediately  put  under 
arms.  The  Sieur  de  Tonty,  the  governor 
of  the  fort,  had  gone  to  the  Iroquois  to  con- 
ciliate the  minds  of  those  Indians ;  we,  nev- 
ertheless, received  a  very  cordial  welcome, 
the  commandant  neglecting  nothing  to  show 
his  joy  at  our  arrival,  to  console  us  in  our 
misfortunes  and  restore  us  after  our  hard- 
ships. 

Although  the  season  was  advanced,  we 
had,  nevertheless,  set  out  in  hopes  of  reach- 
ing Quebec  soon  enough  to  sail  for  France ; 
but,  head  winds  having  detained  us  a  fort- 
night at  the  entrance  of  Lake  Dauphin,  we 
had  to  give  it  over  and  winter  at  the  fort, 

quently  to  this,  mentions  (see  Hist.  Coll.  of  Lou- 
isiana, Vol.  I.,  p.  182)  Father  Marquette,  and, 
though  he  saw  nothing  extraordinary  in  the 
painted  figures,  does  not  make  any  of  the  charges 
here  brought  by  his  companion  on  the  voyage, 
whom  he  contradicts  directly  on  two  other  points. 
261 


JOURNEYS    OF 

which  we  made  a  mission  till  the  spring  of 
1688. 

The  Sieur  de  Tonty  arrived  there  at  the 
beginning  of  winter  with  several  French- 
men. This  made  our  stay  much  m.ore  agree- 
able, as  this  brave  gentleman  v^^as  always 
inseparably  attached  to  the  interests  of  the 
Sieur  de  la  Salle,  whose  lamentable  fate  we 
concealed  from  him,  it  being  our  duty  to 
give  the  first  news  to  the  court. 

He  told  us  that  at  the  same  time  that  we 
were  seeking  the  River  Mississippi  by  the 
sea  he  had  made  a  second  voyage,  descend- 
ing the  river  with  some  French  and  Indians 
to  the  mouth,  hoping  to  find  us  there ;  that  he 
remained  there  a  week,  visited  all  the  re- 
markable points,  and  remarked  that  there 
was  a  fine  port,  with  a  beautiful  entrance 
and  wide  channel,  and  also  places  fit  for 
building  forts,  and  not  at  all  inundated,  as 
he  had  supposed  when  he  descended  the  first 
time  with  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle,  adding  that 
the  lower  river  is  habitable  and  even  inhab- 
ited by  Indian  villages ;  that  ships  can  as- 
cend the  river  a  hundred  leagues  above  the 
gulf;  that,  besides  the  tribes  which  he  had 
discovered  when  descending  the  first  time, 
he  had  seen  several  others  on  the  second,  as 
the  Picheno,  the  Ozanbogus,  the  Tangibao, 
the  Otonnica,  the  Mausopelea,  the  Mouisa, 
262 


LA   SALLE 

and  many  others  which  I  do  not  remember. 

Our  conversations  together  confirmed  me 
in  the  opinion  of  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle,  that 
St.  Louis  Bay  could  not  be  more  than  forty 
or  fifty  leagues  from  the  mouth  of  one  of 
the  arms  of  the  River  Colbert  in  a  straight 
line,  for,  though  we  struck  the  river  only 
at  the  Akansa,  it  was  because  we  took  the 
Ilinois  route  across  the  country,  God  having 
led  us  through  these  parts  to  enable  us  to 
discover  all  those  tribes  which  dwell  there. 

I  had  remarked  one  hundred  and  ten 
populous  nations  on  my  route,  not  including 
a  great  many  others  of  which  I  heard  in 
those  through  which  we  passed,  who  knew 
them  either  in  war  or  in  trade.  The  great- 
est part  of  these  tribes  are  unknown  to  Eu- 
ropeans. 

These  are  the  finest  and  most  fertile  coun- 
tries in  the  world,  the  soil,  which  there  pro- 
duces two  crops  of  every  kind  of  grain  a 
year,  being  ready  to  receive  the  plow.  From 
time  to  time  there  are  vast  prairies  where 
the  grass  is  ten  or  twelve  feet  high  at  all 
seasons ;  at  every  little  distance  there  are 
rivers  entering  larger  ones,  everywhere  nav- 
igable and  free  from  rapids.  On  these  riv- 
ers are  forests  full  of  every  kind  of  trees, 
so  distributed  that  you  can  everywhere  ride 
through  on  horseback. 
263 


JOURNEYS   OF 

The  chase  is  so  abunaant  and  easy,  espe- 
cially for  wild  cattle,  that  herds  of  thou- 
sands are  discovered ;  there  are  deer  and 
other  animals  of  the  stag  kind  in  numbers, 
as  well  as  turkeys,  bustards,  partridges,  par- 
rots, rabbits  and  hares.  Poultry  are  common 
there,  and  produce  at  all  seasons,  and  swine 
several  times  a  year,  as  we  observed  at  the 
settlement,  where  we  left  more  than  two 
hundred. 

The  rivers  are  unusually  abundant  in  all 
kinds  of  fish,  so  much  so  that  we  took  them 
at  the  foot  of  the  fort  with  our  hands,  with- 
out basket  or  net.  Our  people  one  day  took 
away  from  the  Indians  a  fish-head  which 
was  alone  a  load  for  a  man.  No  settler  ar- 
riving in  the  country  will  not  find  at  first 
enough  to  support  plenteously  a  large  fam- 
ily, or  will  not  in  two  years'  time  be  more 
at  his  ease  than  in  any  place  in  Europe.  I 
have  already  remarked  that  horses  for  every 
use  are  there  very  common,  the  Indians 
thinking  themselves  well  paid  when  they 
get  an  axe  for  a  horse. 

The  commerce  might  be  very  great  there 
in  peltries,  tobacco  and  cotton.  Hemp  grows 
very  fine,  and  as  the  fields  are  full  of  mul- 
berry trees,  which  also  line  the  rivers,  silk 
might  be  raised  in  abundance.  Sugar  canes 
would  succeed  there  well^  and  could  be  eas- 
264 


LA    SALLE 

ily  got  by  trade  with  the  West  Indies,  as  the 
European  nations  have  done  in  Terra-firma, 
where  they  are  neighbors  to  Louisiana.®  Be- 
sides, the  great  quantity  of  wool  with  which 
the  cattle  of  the  country  are  loaded,  the  vast 
prairies  everywhere  afford  means  of  raising 
flocks  of  sheep,  which  produce  twice  a  year. 
The  various  accidents  that  befell  us  pre- 
vented our  searching  for  the  treasures  of 
this  country :  we  found  lead  quite  pure  and 
copper  ready  to  work.  The  Indians  told  us 
that  there  were  rivers  where  silver  mines 
are  found ;  others  wished  to  conduct  us  to 

*  These  observations  from  which  Coxe  (Hist. 
Coll.  of  Louisiana,  Vol.  II.,  pp.  262-'65)  doubtless 
took  a  hint,  entitle  Father  Douay  to  the  credit  of 
pointing  out  sources  of  wealth  to  Louisiana.  Cot- 
ton and  sugar  are  already  staple  products,  and 
silk  may  soon  be.  The  valley  of  the  Mississippi 
owes  the  introduction  of  the  sugar-cane  to  the 
Catholic  missionaries,  for  the  Jesuits  brought  in 
some  plants  from  which  the  colony  was  supplied, 
after  they  had  shown  in  their  gardens  at  New 
Orleans  how  successfully  it  could  be  raised.  The 
same  missionaries  were  also  the  first  to  raise 
wheat  in  Illinois,  and  engage  others  to  do  so,  as 
one  of  their  lay-brothers  was  the  first  to  work 
the  copper  mines  of  Lake  Superior,  to  make  arti- 
cles for  the  church  of  Sault  St.  Mary's.  In  the 
East  they  deserve  no  less  a  place  even  in  commer- 
cial history ;  they  not  only  called  the  attention 
of  New  York  to  her  salt  springs,  and  brought 
about  a  commercial  intercourse  between  the 
French  of  Canada  and  the  English  and  Dutch  in 
their  colonies,  but,  by  showing  the  identity  of  our 
ginseng  with  that  of  Tartary,  enabled  France  for 
some  time  to  carry  on  a  very  lucrative  trade  with 
China 

265 


JOURNEYS   OF 

a  country  known  to  the  Spaniards,  abound- 
ing in  gold  and  silver  mines.  There  are  also 
some  villages  where  the  inhabitants  have 
pearls,  which  they  go  to  seek  on  the  sea- 
coast,  and  find,  they  say,  in  oysters. 

We  found  few  nations  within  a  hundred 
and  fifty  or  two  hundred  leagues  of  the  sea 
who  are  not  prejudiced  against  the  Span- 
iards on  account  of  their  great  cruelty. 
These  tribes  are  all  populous,  and  there  is 
one  which,  in  war,  would  furnish  as  many 
as  five  thousand  men. 

The  shortness  of  our  stay  among  these 
tribes  gave  us  no  time  to  lay  solid  founda- 
tions of  Christianity,  but  we  remarked  good 
dispositions  for  the  faith ;  they  are  docile, 
charitable,  susceptible  of  good  impressions ; 
there  is  even  some  government  and  subordi- 
nation, savage  though  it  always  be.  By  the 
help  of  God  religion  might  make  progress 
there.  The  sun  is  their  divinity,  and  they 
offer  it  in  sacrifice,  the  best  of  their  chase, 
in  the  chief's  cabin.  They  pray  for  half  an 
hour,  especially  at  sunrise ;  they  send  him 
the  first  whifT  of  their  pipes,  and  then  send 
one  to  each  of  the  four  cardinal  points. 

I  left  St.  Louis  Bay  on  the  second  voyage, 

to  remain  among  the  CcEnis  and  begin  a 

mission  there.     Here  Father  Zenobius  was 

to  join  me,  to  visit  the  neighboring  tribes, 

266 


LA   SALLE 

while  awaiting  from  France  a  greater  num- 
ber of  gospel  laborers;  but  the  melancholy 
death  of  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle  having  com- 
pelled me  to  proceed,  Father  Zenobius  no 
doubt  went  there  to  meet  me,  and  is,  per- 
haps, there  yet  with  Father  Maximus  (Le 
Clercq),  having  left  M.  de  Chefdeville  at 
the  mission  in  the  fort,  to  which  he  was  des- 
tined at  our  departure.  There  were  there 
nine  or  ten  French  families,  and,  besides, 
several  of  our  people  had  gone  to  get  and 
had  actually  married  Indian  women  to  mul- 
tiply the  colony.  What  has  befallen  them 
since  I  do  not  know. 

This,  adds  Le  Qercq,  is  a  faithful  extract 
of  what  Father  Anastasius  could  remember 
of  his  toilsome  voyage.  He  left  the  Ilinois 
in  the  spring  of  1688  with  M.  Cavelier,  his 
nephew,  the  Sieur  Joustel,  and  an  Indian 
now  domiciled  near  Versailles.  They  ar- 
rived at  Quebec  on  the  27th  [29th]  of  July 
and  sailed  for  France  on  the  20th  [21st]  of 
August,  where,  God  enabling  them  to  be 
still  together,  after  having  passed  through 
so  many  perils,  they  presented  an  account 
of  all  to  the  late  Marquis  of  Seignelay. 


267 


JOURNEYS   OF 

CHAPTER  XII. 

I. 

cavelier's  account  of  la  Salle's  voyage 
to  the  mouth  of  the  mississippi, 
his  landing  in  texas  and  march  to 
the  mississippi. 

[part    I.    TO    APRIL,    1686.] 
RELATION    OF    M.    CAVELIER. 
MONSEIGNEUR  : 

July,  1684. — You  have  here  the  relation 
of  the  voyage  undertaken  by  my  brother  to 
discover  in  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  the  mouth  of 
the  Mississipy.  An  unexpected  and  tragical 
death  having  prevented  his  completing  it 
and  reporting  to  your  lordship,  you  will,  I 
trust,  approve  of  my  taking  his  place. 

In  the  month  of  July,  1684,  we  left  La 
Rochelle  in  four  vessels,  with  very  fine 
weather.  The  season  seemed  to  promise  us 
a  continuance  thereof,  and  should  not,  in  all 
probability,  lead  us  to  fear  either  a  calm  or 
great  heats.  Nevertheless,  the  close  of  the 
month  brought  a  storm,  which  dismasted 
the  vessel  my  brother  was  in  and  compelled 
us  all  to  put  back  to  the  port  from  which 
268 


LA    SALLE 

we  had  started.  We  set  sail  again,  and  a 
few  days  after  a  second  storm  dispersed 
our  little  fleet ;  the  St.  Francis  was  taken 
by  Spanish  cruisers  and  the  other  three  got 
together  only  in  Petit  Goave,  in  St.  Do- 
mingo. I  will  not  give  your  lordship  the 
detail  of  our  course  or  manoeuvres  to  that 
point,  as  that  is  not  my  profession. 

If  these  unfortunate  accidents  dampened 
the  ardor  of  our  adventurers,  the  conduct 
of  M.  de  Beaujeu,  captain  of  a  ship  of  the 
line,  who  commanded  one  of  the  ships  of 
the  fleet,  did  so  no  less ;  and  if  your  lordship 
takes  pains  to  examine,  you  will  find  that 
that  officer,  jealous  of  my  brother's  having 
the  principal  authority  and  the  direction  of 
the  enterprise,  so  traversed  it  that  the  fail- 
ure may  be  attributed  to  him.^ 

July,  1684. — We  made  some  stay  at  Petit 
Goave  to  give  our  crew  a  little  refreshment 
and  to  prepare  to  carry  out  the  project  con- 
veniently. There  M.  de  Beaujeu  began  to 
employ  all  means  that  he  could  invent  to 
prevent  my  brother  from  going  further. 
Nevertheless,  we  set  sail  towards  the  latter 
part  of  November,  intending  to  reconnoitre 
the  land  ten  or  twenty  leagues  north  of  the 
river;  but,   head   winds  having  forced  us 

[^  The  documents  published  by  Margry  present 
a  more  favorable  view  of  Beaujeu.] 
269 


JOURNEYS    OF 

back  several  times,  my  brother  at  last  de- 
termined to  explore  Florida,  whatever  point 
we  made ;  but  M.  de  Beaujeu  did  not  fol- 
low him.  He  abandoned  us,  under  pretext 
of  having  been  surprised  by  a  squall. 

1685. — On  the  6th  of  January-  we  made 
the  coast  of  Florida,  and,  supporting  our- 
selves north  of  the  mouth  of  the  river,  we 
sailed  southerly  along  the  coast,  crowding 
sail,  for  fear  of  being  forced  by  the  currents 
into  Bahama  channel.  Some  days  after,  on 
taking  the  altitude,  we  found  ourselves  fifty 
leagues  south,  which  obliged  us  to  turn  back 
and  retrace  our  steps.  Still  coasting  along, 
we  discovered  Espiritu  Santo  Bay  Feb.  4 
[February  8th],  where  we  found  M.  de 
Beaujeu.  My  brother  had  a  long  conference 
with  him  there,  at  the  close  of  which  the 
three  vessels  set  sail  to  pursue  the  search. 

Feb.  1685. — The  next  morning  M.  de 
Beaujeu  sent  his  long  boat  to  my  brother  to 
tell  him  that  he  had  sailed  fifty  leagues  since 
he  left  Espiritu  Santo  Bay,  and  tliat,  discov- 
ering inland  a  kind  of  gulf  or  river ;  it  might 
be  the  Mississipy,  and  that  he  had  no  orders 
to  go  any  further.  My  brother  allowed  him- 
self to  be  persuaded  that  this  might  be  one 
of  the  arms  of  that  river,  and,  having  sent 

['  Cf.  French,  Hist.  Coll'ns  La.  I.,  94.  Also 
Vol.  II.,  page  22.] 

270 


LA    SALLE 

out  his  boat  to  sound,  he  found  three  and 
a  half  fathoms  of  water  in  the  shallowest 
part  of  the  channel  and  entered  with  his 
vessel.  He  ordered  the  pink  to  unload  as 
much  as  possible  and  to  wait  till  he  sent 
a  pilot  to  bring  her  in  ;  but  this  was  so  badly 
done  that  she  struck  on  a  sand-bar  and 
could  not  get  off. 

Meanwhile  M.  de  Beaujeu,  who  had  an- 
chored off,  wrote  to  my  brother  and  sent  the 
letter  by  his  lieutenant.  He  told  him  that, 
having  reached  the  mouth  of  the  Missis- 
sipy,  he  believed  that  he  had  sufficiently 
fulfilled  his  duty;  that,  having  seen  the  pink' 
perish  before  his  eyes,  he  did  not  think  it 
proper  to  risk  entering  the  river  with  his 
ship,  for  fear  of  a  like  mishap ;  that,  having 
no  more  provisions  or  refreshments,  he  was 
determined  to  return  to  France,  and  he 
begged  him  to  send  his  letters  for  the  Court, 
with  his  exoneration  from  all  accidents  that 
had  happened  or  might  thereafter  happen. 
My  brother  most  generously  granted  all. 

March  14,  168^. — Monsieur  de  Beaujeu 
having  accordingly  hoisted  sail  for  France, 
my  brother  undertook  to  do  three  things  at 
once :  One  was  to  make  a  storehouse  on 
shore  to  lay  up  his  ammunition  and  provis- 
ions, merchandise  and  other  things;  the 
other  was  to  go  himself  with  thirty  or  forty 
271 


JOURNEYS   OF 

men  to  select  a  suitable  place  for  a  settle- 
ment at  the  end  of  the  bay,  and  the  other  to 
bring  his  vessel  as  far  as  he  could  into  the 
bay.  All  this  was  executed,  for  the  vessel 
was  brought  up  to  the  mouth  of  a  river  to 
which  the  name  of  Vache  (Cow)^  was 
given,  on  account  of  the  number  of  that  ani- 
mal found  there,  and  here  he  built  a  little 
fort  of  fourteen  guns,  with  small  but  pretty 
convenient  houses  and  storehouses  sufficient 
to  contain  all  that  he  had. 

Meanwhile  my  brother,  originally  under 
the  idea  that  the  river  we  were  in  was  one 
of  the  arms  of  the  Mississipy,  on  account 
of  the  quantity  of  reeds  it  bore  down  to  the 
sea,  at  last  saw  his  error  and  formed  the 
design  of  discovering  it  by  land ;  but  unable 
to  leave  his  fort  without  exposing  it  to  the 
insults  of  the  nearest  Indians,  who  were 
waging  a  cruel  war  on  us  *  (believing  us 
Spaniards),  he  endeavored  to  gain  their  con- 
fidence and  friendship.  Your  Lordship 
knows  that  he  has  an  admirable  tact  for 
that.  He  employed  it  so  adroitly  in  this 
conjuncture  that  before  the  close  of  July 
we  mutually  visited  each  other.  We  often 
went  to  their  village,^  which  was  quite  near 

['Later   called    by    its    Spanish    equivalent    La 
Vaca,  a  name  which  it  still  bears.] 
*They  killed  ten  men  with  arrows. 
'These  Indians  are  called  the  Bracamos. 
272 


LA    SALLE 

our  fort  (which  vvc  will  in  future  call  Fort 
of  St.  Louis  Bay)*',  and  one  day  they  offered 
to  guide  my  brother  to  a  neighboring  na- 
tion, their  ally,  only  about  fifteen  leagues 
off,  to  show  him,  they  said,  curious  things. 
My  brother  accepted  their  offer,  thanked 
them  for  the  friendship  they  testified  and 
made  them  some  presents ;  after  which,  set- 
ting out  to  the  number  of  twenty-four,''  ac- 
companied by  a  troop  of  Indians,  we  arrived 
at  a  large  village,  surrounded  by  a  kind  of 
wall  made  with  potter's  clay  and  sand,  forti- 
fied with  little  towers  at  intervals,  where 
we  found  fastened  to  a  post  the  arms  of 
Spain  engraved  on  a  copper  plate,  dated 
1588. 

The  people  welcomed  us  and  showed  us 
some  hammers  and  an  anvil,  two  small 
pieces  of  iron  cannon,  a  small  bronze  cul- 
verine,  spearheads,  old  sword  blades  and 
some  volumes  of  Spanish  comedies ;  and 
leading  us  thence  to  a  little  fishing  hamlet 
about  two  leagues  off,  they  showed  us  a 
second  post,  also  bearing  the  arms  of  Spain 
and  some  old  chimneys.^    All  this  convinced 

["  Now  the  Matagorda.] 

[^  La  Salle  made  a  brief  excursion  in  the  spring 
of  1685  and  a  more  extended  one  in  the  fall  of 
that  year.    Cf.  Vol.  11.,  Chap.  III.] 

*  There  is  no  known  authority  for  any  such 
early  occupation  of  Texas. 


JOURNEYS    OF 

us  tliat  the  Spaniards  had  been  there  before. 
They  also  gave  us  to  understand  by  signs 
that  the  Mississipy  River  was  very  diffi- 
cult to  find,  because  its  mouth  could  not  be 
perceived  a  league  off.  They  then  drew 
vessels  with  coal,  and  gave  us  to  understand 
that  many  passed  along  their  coast. 

Having  taken  leave  of  these  Indians,  to 
whom  we  made  some  presents  and  courtesy 
for  courtesy,  we  returned  to  our  fort  at  St. 
Louis  Bay,  where  we  made  some  stay  to 
cultivate  more  and  more  the  confidence  and 
friendship  of  our  Bracamos  (so  is  the  In- 
dian nation  called  that  dwells  near  our 
fort),  in  order  to  leave  protectors  to  the 
people  whom  we  would  have  to  leave  in 
tlie  fort  while  we  went  overland  to  seek  the 
Mississipy. 

We  observed  during  our  stay  that  the 
east  winds  generally  prevail  by  day  and 
west  winds  by  night ;  that  the  least  speck 
of  cloud  forebodes  a  violent  gale,  which  will 
last  an  hour  at  most ;  that  the  north  winds 
(which  the  Spaniards  there  dread  im- 
mensely) are  not  so  violent  as  the  west 
winds  which  the  fishing  smacks  stand  in 
winter  time  on  the  Banks  of  Newfound- 
land ;  and  lastly,  that  the  tide  rises  here  ver}-- 
slightly.  We  saw  quantities  of  salt,  formed 
naturally  in  various  spots,  which  led  us  to 
274 


LA   SALLE 

infer  that  It  would  be  easy  to  make  success- 
ful salt  works. 

Having,  then,  provided  for  the  security 
of  the  fort  by  the  friendship  of  the  neigh- 
boring Indians,  by  arms  and  ammunition, 
and  for  the  subsistence  of  the  people  whom 
we  left  there  by  the  provisions  and  goods 
which  remained,  and  after  my  brother  had 
recommended  vigilance,  patience  and  devo- 
tion to  the  King's  service,  we  set  out  on 
the  first  of  November,^  accompanied  by 
thirty  men,  carrying  only  our  arms,  ammu- 
nition for  game,  and  some  trifling  articles 
for  the  Indians. 

Ten  or  twelve  days  after  we  found  a  very 
populous  village,  where  the  men  and  women 
wore  large  pearls  hanging  from  the  carti- 
lage between  the  two  nostrils.  I  bought  a 
few  in  order  to  show  your  Lordship.  I 
have  already  shown  them  to  Catillon,  lapi- 
dary at  Paris,  who  assured  me  that  they 
were  of  the  finest  water  in  the  world,  but 
imperfect  in  shape.  We  tried  to  learn  from 
these  Indians  the  place  whence  they  drew 
this  precious  merchandise,  but,  being  able 
to  understand  us  only  by  signs,  we  could 
only  presume  that  they  got  them  from  the 
sea  when  they  went  to  catch  fish,  for  they 

*  Nov.  I,  departure  of  M.  de  la  Salle  to  discovej 
the  mouth  of  the  river  by  land. 


JOURNEYS    OF 

showed  us  large  pirogues  and  nets  which 
apparently  were  solely  for  this  use.  We 
have  since  learned  that  many  small  rivers 
which  pass  through  their  country  empty 
into  St.  Louis  Bay. 

December  and  January. — Having  left  this 
nation,  we  ran  for  two  months  in  search  of 
our  river,  with  no  hope  of  finding  it,  finding 
only  Indians,  whose  manners  kept  us  in  per- 
petual distrust ;  we  did  not  dare  to  make  any 
stay  in  any  place  for  fear  of  some  surprise. 
February,  1688  [1686.]  The  continual 
marching,  the  rigor  of  the  season  and  the 
fears  that  we  had  conceived  from  the  re- 
served and  distrustful  manners  of  the  In- 
dians made  us  undergo  hardships  that  it 
would  be  difficult  for  me  to  express. 

In  the  beginning  of  February  we  came  to 
a  pretty  large  river,  which  my  brother 
thought  might  be  the  Mississipy,  although 
its  course  was  just  the  opposite.  Our  senti- 
ments were  different ;  we  followed  its 
banks  for  two  days,  without  meeting  man 
or  beast. 

Some  days  after,  having  perceived  a  vil- 
lage, we  deemed  proper  to  fire  a  volley  be- 
fore entering,  in  order  to  alarm  the  Indians 
and  put  them  to  flight,  so  as  to  take  from 
their  cabins  what  Indian  corn  we  needed. 
This  having  been  executed,  we  left  them 
276 


LA   SALLE 

payment  on  the  spot,  after  which  we  left  to 
continue  our  search. 

We  had  scarcely  made  a  league  when  we 
perceived  two  Indians  running  after  us.  We 
first  thought  the  villagers,  charmed  with 
the  beauty  of  the  knives,  scissors  and  nee- 
dles that  we  had  left  in  payment,  had 
deputed  them  to  bring  us  back;  but  we  were 
greatly  surprised  when  we  saw  these  In- 
dians fall  on  my  brother  and  almost  stifle 
him  by  their  embraces  in  the  transport  of 
pleasure  which  they  experienced  on  seeing 
him  again.  They  were  two  Shawnees  of 
three  whom  my  brother  lost  when  he  de- 
scended to  the  mouth  of  the  Mississipy  by 
the  Ilinois  River.^"  They  told  us  that  their 
comrade  was  sick  in  the  village,  to  which 
they  begged  us  to  return,  assuring  us  of  the 
humanity  and  good  faith  of  the  people.  My 
brother  was  sincerely  pleased  to  find  them 
again,  and,  in  hopes  of  learning  from  them 
what  he  desired,  he  made  no  difficulty  of 
resolving  to  follow  them.  They  took  us  first 
to  their  cabin,  where  we  found  their  com- 
rade. They  made  us  take  up  our  quarters 
there  while  a  larger  cabin  was  preparing  for 
us  nearby. 

They  told  us  that,  having  gone  out  to 
hunt  while   in   my  brother's   service,  they 

'°  It  was  in  1682. 

277 


JOURNEYS    OF 

were  surrounded  and  taken  by  thirty  or 
forty  warriors  of  the  village  where  we  were, 
who  carried  them  there  without  binding 
them;  that  the  whole  nation,  and  even  their 
allies,  had  greatly  honored  them  and  held 
them  for  something  more  than  men  on  ac- 
count of  the  power  of  their  guns ;  that  they 
wondered  to  see  them  kill  a  bison  a  hundred 
paces  off,  and  several  turkeys  at  a  single 
shot,  but  that  when  their  ammunition  failed 
these  people  pressed  them  to  make  more 
and  ridiculed  them  because  they  had  not  the 
secret  of  making  it.  They  also  told  us  that 
they  had  married  in  this  village,  and  that 
they  had  no  difficulty  in  learning  the  lan- 
guage. They  then  took  us  to  a  large  cabin, 
where  we  were  conveniently  lodged. 

It  was  from  these  three  Indians  that  we 
learned  that  we  were  only  forty  leagues 
from  the  sea ;  that  the  Indians  among  whom 
we  were  made  war  on  others  who  had  inter- 
course with  the  Spaniards,  distant  about  one 
hundred  and  thirty  leagues  from  the  sea; 
that  there  was  a  river  [30]  leagues  from  us 
more  beautiful  than  the  Mississipy,^^  and 
two  others,  fifteen  or  twenty  leagues,  in 
which  gold  was  found  in  large  grains  and  in 
dust ;  that  the  Indians  used  it  only  to  make 
collars  and  bracelets,  but  that  they  valued  it 

*'  30  L.    They  meant  the  Rio  Bravo. 
278 


LA    SALLE 

less  than  certain  red  stones  which  they  put 
to  the  same  use. 

They^^  added :  We  have  been  to  war 
against  the  nation  that  has  intercourse  with 
the  Spaniards  and  took  some  prisoners,  who 
were  neatly  dressed  in  silk.  They  told  us 
that  the  Spaniards  furnished  them  their 
clothes  and  many  other  things  in  exchange 
for  certain  stones  which  they  prized  highly. 
They  directed  us  to  the  spot  whence  they 
took  these  precious  stones,  and,  as  we  could 
pass  by  it  without  deviating  much  from  the 
route  we  had  to  take  back  to  our  village,  we 
easily  persuaded  our  troops,  as  curious  as 
ourselves,  to  go  there.  The  prisoners  act- 
ing as  guides,  we  reached  a  hill  which  may 
be  two  leagues  long,  where  they  showed  us 
some  holes  made  by  the  Indians,  from  which 
we  took  some  specimens  of  stone^^  which  we 
have  kept.  This  hill  lies  about  forty  leagues 
from  our  village  and  is  near  a  little  river 
which  empties  in  a  larger  one,^*  which,  com- 
ing a  great  distance  and  passing  between 
two  ranges  of  hills,  empties  into  the  Gulf 
of  Mexico.  The  Spaniards  have  several  vil- 
lages on  the  southern  part  of  this  river,  and 

"  It  is  the  Shawnees  that  speak. 

"  M.  Cavelier  took  some  to  Paris,  where  the 
body  of  goldsmiths  assayed  them  by  the  King's 
order  and  found  that  it  was  gold  ore,  which  had 
only  half  waste. 

"  Rio  Bravo. 

279 


JOURNEYS   OF 

the  Indians  who  make  war  cwi  them,  cross 
over  and  make  captures  along  the  road/^ 
which  they  frequent  with  Httle  precaution. 
February,  1688  [1686]. — They  assured 
us  that  there  was  not  a  nation  for  a  hundred 
leagues  around  but  feared  the  inroads  of  the 
Spaniards;  that  they  dreaded  them  on  ac- 
count of  the  frightful  stories  told  of  their 
firearms;  that  this  consideration  alone  had 
prevented  their  leaguing  together  to  under- 
take to  carry  a  town,  lacking  neither  desire, 
courage  nor  means  of  uniting ;  that  for  this 
purpose  they  could  bring  together  one  hun- 
dred thousands  warriors  and  ten  thousand 
horses,  without  going  fifty  leagues  from 
their  village ;  that  this  army  could  subsist, 
even  without  supplies  of  provisions,  by  the 
quantity  of  bison,  small  game  and  fish  found 
everywhere  by  merely  dividing  into  troops 
of  ten  thousand  men  and  giving  two^  leagues 
of  land  to  each  troop,  and  always  camping 
in  beautiful  prairies  with  which  the  country 
abounds ;  that  even  if  we  wished  to  lay  up 
provisions  of  Indian  corn,  peas  or  beans,  it 
could  easily  be  done,  as  the  earth  produces 
plentifully  without  being  sowed  or  culti- 
vated ;  and,  finally,  that  the  country  is  full 
of  all  sorts  of  excellent  fruit,  which  would 

"  Apparently  the  road  from  Old  to  New  Mex« 
ico. 

280 


LA    SALLE 

also  be  a  great  help.  They  convinced  us  that 
they  needed  only  good  leaders  and  some 
regular  troops  to  instruct  them,,  arms,  sad- 
dles, bridles  and  ammunition.  On  this  my 
brother  having  asked  them  on  which  side 
they  would  attack  the  Spaniards,  they  re- 
plied that  it  was  beyond  that  great  river^®  of 
which  they  had  spoken  to  us,  where  there 
were  several  cities  and  villages,  some  open 
and  others  fortified  merely  by  palisades, 
which  it  would  be  easy  to  force,  the  more 
easily  as  the  Indians  had  often  got  the  upper 
hand  of  them ;  that  the  year  before  they  had 
killed  or  taken  over  two  thousand  persons 
and  forced  them  to  send  religious  to  exhort 
them  to  peace. 

They  told  us,  moreover,  that  the  Span- 
iards had  more  than  thirty  gold  and  silver 
mines  in  different  parts  of  the  country 
which  they  durst  not  work  on  account  of 
the  proximity  of  nations  that  they  were  at 
war  with. 

That  the  climate  of  the  country  north- 
ward and  eastward  of  the  great  river^'^  was 
perfectly  beautiful,  and  so  healthy  that  men 
died  there  only  of  old  age  or  smallpox ;  the 
land  so  fertile  that,  unsown,  untilled,  it  pro- 
duced two  crops  of  Indian  corn  and  three  of 

'•Rio  Bravo. 
"  Rio  Bravo. 

281 


JOURNEYS    OF 

peas  or  beans  a  year;  that  they  were  told 
that  the  other  side  of  the  river  was  neither 
fertile  nor  healthy. 

That  there  was  near  by  a  nation  that 
made  cloth  of  nettles,  wild  flax  and  the  bark 
of  trees,  and  who  manufactured  cloth  of 
buffalo  wool ;  that  they  give  the  finest  colors 
in  the  world  to  all  their  fabrics ;  in  fact,  they 
gave  us  earth^^  of  all  colors,  which  we  took 
to  France  that  there  were  other  nations^®  to 
the  northwest  who  had  kings  and  chiefs 
and  observed  some  forms  of  govermnent, 
honoring  and  respecting  their  kings  as  Eu- 
ropeans do  theirs. 

That  there  were  some  on  the  east-"  so 
fierce  that  it  never  had  any  comrmmications 
with  the  others  and  so  cruel  that  they  de- 
voured each  other. 

That  about  fifty  leagues  from  the  spot 
where  we  were,  were  two  or  three  moun- 
tains on  the  banks  of  a  river,  from  which 
were  taken  red  stones  as  clear  as  crystal. 
They  gave  us  some  of  it  and  some  gold  ore, 
which  we  took  to  France. 

February,  1685  [1686]. — After  they  had 
related  all  this  my  brother  wished  to  induce 

"  The  Paris  dyers  were  amazed  to  see  the  qual- 
ity of  this  earth. 

"These  were  the  Panismahans  [Pawnee-Mahas] 
and  the  Ontotnnta  fOttoes]. 

''"  Florida,  apparently. 

282 


LA    SALLE 

them  to  follow  him,  to  return  to  their  own 
country;  but  they  answered  him  that  they 
were  not  unnatural  enough  to  abandon  their 
wives  and  children ;  that,  moreover,  being  in 
the  most  fertile,  healthy  and  peaceful  coun- 
try in  the  world,  they  would  be  devoid  of 
sense  to  leave  it  and  expose  themselves  to  be 
tomahawked  by  the  Illinois  or  burnt  by  the 
Iroquois  on  their  way  to  another  where  the 
winter  was  insufferably  cold,  the  summer 
without  game,  and  ever  in  war,  but  that  if 
the  French  built  or  established  any  colony 
in  the  Mississipy  that  they  would  approach 
it,  and  that  they  would  have  the  pleasure  of 
rendering  them  considerable  services. 

Towards  the  close  of  January  we  parted 
from  our  honest  Shawnees,  who  could  not 
accompany  us  to  the  Mississipy  for  fear 
of  being  suspected  of  wishing  to  follow  us, 
but  they  induced  ten  or  twelve  warriors  to 
lead  us.  On  the  loth  of  March  we  descried 
the  River  Mississipy,^^  where  we  left  some 
men  in  a  little  redoubt  of  pickets,  which 
we  made  ourselves,  and,  retracing  our  steps, 
we  passed  again  through  the  village  of  our 
Shawnees,  where  we  were  regaled  as  well 
as  these  good  people  could  regale  us,  and, 
continuing  our  march,  we  reached  St.  Louis 

"  It  is  not  at  all  probable  that  La  Salle  reached 
the  Mississippi.  Cf.  Joutel,  Preface  to  1714  Edi- 
tion. 

283 


JOURNEYS    OF 

Bay  on  the  30th  of  the  month  of  March, 
1685  [1686]. 

Return  of  M.  de  la  Salle. 

Our  people  received  us  with  all  possible 
joy,  and  we  experienced  much  pleasure  to 
find  them  all  in  good  health ;  but  our  joy 
was  soon  marred  by  the  most  distressing  ac- 
cident in  the  world,  for  our  frigate,  eight 
or  ten  days  after  our  arrival,  struck  and 
perished  with  all  on  board,  except  eight 
men.  The  loss  which  we  had  sustained  of 
ten  men,  the  best  sailors  we  had  on  board, 
who  were  killed  with  arrows  by  the  Bra- 
camos  at  the  time  they  made  war  on  us, 
supposing  us  to  be  Spaniards,  was  surely 
the  cause  of  the  loss  of  the  vessel,  which, 
perhaps,  lacked  experienced  people.  In  fine, 
the  chagrin  which  my  brother  experienced 
at  the  loss  joined  to  the  hardships  which  we 
had  undergone  during  our  painful  march, 
brought  on  a  malady  which  nearly  took  him 
out  of  the  world  and  overwhelmed  our  lit- 
tle party  with  despair.  In  fact,  my  Lord, 
after  the  loss  of  the  vessel,  which  deprived 
us  of  our  only  means  of  returning  to  France, 
we  had  no  resource  for  our  subsistence  ex- 
cept my  brother's  good  management  and 
firmness,  and  each  of  us  regarded  his  death 
as  his  own,  for  we  beheld  ourselves  cast 
284 


LA   SALLE 

away  in  a  savage  country,  without  assist- 
ance and  cut  off  by  immense  distances  from 
every  Christian  nation. 

My  brother  recovered  at  last,  and  when 
his  health  was  perfectly  restored  he  pro- 
posed to  undertake  to  reach  Canada  by  land, 
so  as  to  come  to  France  to  report  what  he 
had  done.  The  way  is  long,  painful  and 
dangerous  beyond  all  that  can  be  expressed 
to  the  contrary,  so  the  least  hardy  durst  not 
undertake  it.  These  my  brother  left  in 
charge  of  the  fort,  with  necessary  provis- 
ions, commending  them  to  remain  strongly 
attached  to  the  King's  service.  He  formed 
a  party  of  those  who  v/ere  disposed  to  fol- 
low him.  Father  Athanasius  [Anastasius 
Douay],  my  nephew,  Moranget;  my 
brother's  godson,  two  Shawnee  Indians, 
who  had  followed  my  brother  to  France, 
and  I  were  of  the  party. 


CHAPTER  XHI. 

[CAVELIER's  account,  part  II.      LA  salle's 
LAST  TWO  JOURNEYS.] 

We  started  on  the  13th  of  April,  1685^ 
[1686],  and  laid  our  route  so  as  to  pass  by 

*  April    13,    1685 — First   departure  of  M.   de  la 
Salle  for  Canada  by  the  Illinois. 
285 


JOURNEYS    OF 

the  Illinois,  where  we  had  resolved  to  rest. 
It  seems  to  me  unnecessary  to  speak  here 
of  the  minutiae  of  our  march,  and  I  will 
merely  sa)'  in  general  the  most  remarkable 
things  that  we  saw  and  observed.  We  were 
very  kindly  and  affectionately  received  by 
all  the  nations  that  we  passed  through ;  we 
had  plenty  everywhere ;  we  received  pres- 
ents and  were  supplied  with  guides  and 
horses.  Among  these  nations,  the  Senis^ 
[Cenis]^  seem  to  us  the  most  numerous 
and  polished ;  it  is  governed  by  a  king,  or 
cacique,  and  the  subordination  that  we  re- 
marked among  them  made  us  infer  that  they 
had  officers ;  the  houses  are  built  with  order 
and  very  prettily,  and  they  have  the  art  of 
making  a  cloth  of  feathers  and  the  hair  of 
animals.  We  found  there  silver  lamps,  old 
muskets  and  Spanish  sword-blades.  Hav- 
ing asked  them  by  signs  where  they  got 
them,  they  took  a  coal  and  depicted  a  Span- 
iard, houses,  steeples,  and  showed  the  part 
of  the  heaven  under  which  New  Mexico 
would  lie. 

M.   de  la  Salle  Arrives  at  the  Fort  of  St.  Louis 
Day. 

On  leaving  this  vUlage  my  brother,  our 

nephew    and    three    soldiers    were    greatly 

^  Scnis,  a  very  civilized  nation  of  Indians. 
*  The  "Texas"  Indians  of  the  Spaniards. 
286 


LA    SALLE 

troubled  by  certain  strange  fruits  which 
they  had  eaten  too  freely.  They  all  took 
the  fever,  which  did  not  leave  them  till  two 
months  afterward.  My  brother  was  so  af- 
fected and  weakened  by  it  that  we  did  not 
dare  to  proceed,  but,  retracing  our  steps, 
returned  after  forty  days  to  the  fort  in  St. 
Louis  Bay,*  where  we  were  received  with  all 
possible  joy  by  our  people  and  by  the  Braca- 
mos,  who  came  first  to  visit  us  and  brought 
us  a  quantity  of  deer. 

The  attempts  which  we  had  made  to  go 
to  Canada  not  having  succeeded,  we  turned 
our  hopes  to  the  aid  that  the  King  might 
send  us  from  France,  and  we  patiently 
awaited  it  till  the  close  of  the  year  1686; 
but  at  last,  weary  of  being  deprived  of  the 
society  of  our  countrymen,  and  banished,  as 
it  were,  to  the  uttermost  parts  of  the  earth, 
we  regarded  this  agreeable  country  only  as 
a  tedious  resting  place  and  a  perpetual 
prison,  feeling  satisfied  that  had  not  the 
King  deemed  us  lost  he  would  have  had  the 
goodness  to  send  some  one  to  continue  the 
exploration  which  we  had  undertaken  or 
to  carry  us  back  to  France.  We  often  made 
vague  conjectures,  which  served  only  to  af- 
flict us,  and  at  last,  when  the  beginning  of 

[*  In  October,  1686.  For  details  of  this  journey 
see  Vol.  I.,  Chap.  X.] 

287 


JOURNEYS   OF 

1686  [1687]  came,  my  brother  proposed  to 
make  a  second  attempt.  As  all  minds  were 
full  of  the  desire  of  again  beholding  France, 
his  eloquence  was  required  only  to  persuade 
some  of  our  people  to  remain  in  the  fort. 
He  portrayed  to  them  the  hardships  and 
dangers  to  be  encountered,  the  impossibility 
of  subsisting  if  they  all  went  together  on 
so  long  a  march,  with  no  resource  but  hunt- 
ing. He  succeeded  so  well  that  a  part  de- 
termined to  keep  the  fort,  and  my  brother 
took  only  twenty-eight^  of  the  most  vigor- 
ous, among  them  Father  Athanasius,  our 
nephews,  Cavelier  and  Moranget  my 
brother's  godson,  the  pilot  of  his  vessel  and 
myself. 

Second  Attempt  to  Reach  Canada  by  Land. 

':  We  started  on  the  6th  [or  12th]  of  Jan- 
uary (after  hearing  mass  and  performing 
our  devotions,  and  exhorting  the  people  who 
remained  to  watch  the  safekeeping  of  the 
fort,  promising  soon  to  return  with  help 
from  France)  and  went  to  sleep  at  the  vil- 
lage of  the  Bracamos. 

The  7th  we  made  five  or  six  leagues* 
progress  through  canes  and  reeds. 

The  8th  we  made  also  five  or  six  leagues 
in  more  clear  and  level  country. 

'  Others  give  20  and  17. 
288 


LA    SALLE 

The  9th  we  arrived  at  the  village  of  the 
Kouraras,  where  we  tarried  two  days. 
There  we  saw  a  party  of  seven  or  eight 
hundred  warriors,  who  were  bringing  in  one 
hundred  and  fifty  prisoners  in  triumph.  We 
saved  some  who  were  going  to  be  cast  into 
the  water,  bound  hand  and  foot. 

The  1 2th  we  crossed  a  river  on  a  raft 
with  much  risk.  ITie  fear  that  we  had  ex- 
perienced was  not  yet  dissipated,  when  all 
at  once  a  band  of  Indians,  rushing  desper- 
ately on  us,  revived  it  in  a  still  more  intense 
degree;  but  these  good  people,  far  from 
harming  us,  took  us  to  their  cabins,  where 
they  gave  us  several  kinds  of  meat  to  eat 
and  offered  us  pipes  and  tobacco.  While  we 
were  engaged  in  smoking  they  began  to 
sing  and  dance  in  a  very  curious  manner, 
and  stopped  only  when  we  departed.  We 
made  six  leagues  that  day. 

The  15th  we  resumed  our  march,  al- 
though our  good  and  honest  hunters  made 
every  effort  to  keep  us  at  least  till  next  day. 
They  gave  us  an  escort  of  twelve  men,  who 
accompanied  us  four  leagues  from  the  vil- 
lage and  confided  us  to  other  hunters,  who 
treated  us  in  the  same  manner  as  the  first 
during  the  two  days  that  we  were  in  com- 
pany. 

The  i6th  we  marched  six  or  seven  leagues 
289 


JOURNEYS    OF 

in  beautiful  prairies,  studded  with  little 
groves  at  intervals,  and  at  evening  we  en- 
camped on  the  banks  of  a  little  stream. 

Tlie  17th,  in  the  morning,  when  about  to 
march,  we  perceived  one  hundred  and  fifty 
Indians,  all  on  horseback,  armed  with 
lances  tipped  with  sharpened  bone,  well  tied 
and  encased,  each  of  whom  attacked  a  bull. 
No  sooner  had  they  perceived  us  when  some 
of  them  left  the  party  and  came  to  welcome 
us,  after  dismounting.  They  at  first  re- 
garded us  with  astonishment,  and,  after  hav- 
ing examined  us,  they  uttered  extraordinary 
exclamations.  They  then  made  us  mount, 
the  more  conveniently  to  witness  the  close 
of  the  bull-fight,  which  seemed  to  us  the 
most  diverting  thing  imaginable,  and  I  am 
convinced  that  there  is  no  chase  as  curious 
in  Europe.  When  the  combat  was  ended  by 
the  death  of  several  animals  the  combatants 
came  galloping  to  us  and,  giving  many 
tokens  of  surprise  and  joy  at  meeting  us, 
they  led  us  away  to  their  village.  Their 
frank  and  cordial  manners  made  us  follow 
them  without  repugnance.  They  often  ut- 
tered the  word  Kanoutinoa,®  pointing  to 
themselves  ;  this  made  us  suppose  that  it  was 
the  name  of  the  nation.  They  took  us 
straight  to  the  cabin  of  their  great  chief,  or 

°  Cf.  Shea,  Early  Voyages,  36,  note. 
290 


LA   SALLE 

captain,  where  they  first  washed  our  heads, 
hands  and  feet  with  warm  water,  after 
which  they  presented  us  boiled  and  roast 
meat  to  eat  and  an  unknown  fish,  cooked 
whole,  that  was  six  feet  long,  laid  in  a  dish 
of  its  length.  It  was  of  a  wonderful  taste 
and  we  preferred  it  to  meat.  They  told  us 
by  signs  that  they  were  abundant  and  came 
from  a  distance,  ascending  the  river. 

We  bought  at  this  place  thirty  horses, 
which  mounted  us  all  and  carried  our  bag- 
gage. They  cost  us  thirty  knives,  ten  hatch- 
ets and  six  dozen  needles.  On  the  19th  we 
crossed  the  river  on  their  boats  and  our 
horses  swam  over.  We  made  that  day  four 
or  five  leagues  and  encamped  on  a  spot 
where  there  was  grass  to  pasture  our  horses, 
which  we  tied  to  good  stakes. 

On  the  20th,  about  two  leagues  from  the 
spot  where  we  had  passed  the  night,  we 
found  quite  a  well-beaten  path ;  we  followed 
it  because  it  ran  in  the  direction  in  which 
we  had  resolved  to  go.  We  saw  there  four 
old  women  and  four  young  girls,  who 
passed  by  us  weeping  and  tearing  their  hair, 
without  having  curiosity  enough  to  look  at 
us.  This  seemed  to  us  an  ill  omen,  but  we 
paid  no  great  attention  to  it.  The  next  mo- 
ment we  saw  a  crowd  coming  towards  us ; 
we  first  put  ourselves  in  a  state  of  defense, 
291 


JOURNEYS   OF 

prepared  for  all  hazards ;  but  these  people, 
instead  of  approaching  us,  fled,  and  we  pur- 
sued our  way,  and  in  the  evening  reached 
a  village,  the  cabins  of  which  were  made  of 
canes  interlaced  and  whitened  with  very  fine 
plaster.  The  Indians,  in  alarm,  took  flight, 
but,  seeing  that  we  encamped  near  their  vil- 
lage, without  doing  them  any  harm,  and 
that  we  made  them  signs  to  return,  they 
gradually  approached  us,  and  finally  ven- 
tured to  enter  our  tents  of  grass  and 
branches  of  trees.  We  made  them  some  lit- 
tle presents.  The  next  day  they  took  us 
to  their  village.  It  seems  to  me  that 
they  said  they  were  called  Ticapanas 
[Tyakappan] . 

Indians  Speaking  Spanish. 

They  brought  us  one  of  their  number 
who  spoke  Spanish,  and,  some  boys  whom 
we  had  in  our  party  acting  as  interpreters, 
we  learned  many  things  from  him  which  I 
will  relate  to  your  Lordship  in  the  collection 
of  memoirs  of  my  brother. 

On  the  22d  we  continued  our  march,  and 
after  fording  the  river,  led  by  five  Indians, 
we  entered  a  valley  (five  leagues  from  our 
starting  point),  which,  though  it  was  mid- 
winter, was  full  of  fruit  trees,  flowers  and 
a  prodigious  quantity  of  birds  of  various 
292 


LA    SALLE 

kinds.  We  encamped  there  in  a  favorable 
position  to  pass  the  night,  while  our  Indians 
came  back  from  the  hunt  loaded  with  tur- 
keys. They  gave  us  a  long  account  of  this 
valley,  but  we  could  not  understand  a  word 
of  it. 

On  the  23d  they  took  us  to  the  great  vil- 
lage of  the  Palomas  [Palonas],  which  is 
surrounded  by  palisades  of  cane.  Our 
guides  were  there  questioned  about  us.  We 
inferred  that  they  answered  that  we  had  not 
the  air  of  being  Spaniards ;  we  do  not  know 
what  they  believed,  for  they  lodged  us  in 
a  great  cabin  outside  the  village,  where  they 
brought  us  more  than  thirty  handsome 
maidens  of  their  village.  We  pointed  up  to 
heaven,  making  signs  that  it  was  an  ex- 
ecrable custom,  but,  not  understanding  us, 
they  thought  that  we  were  talking  of  the 
sun,  for  they  instantly  placed  their  hands  on 
their  foreheads  and  fell  flat  on  the  ground, 
looking  up  to  it,  and  the  young  men  uttered 
fearful  cries ;  seeing  that,  we  fled  from  the 
persecution  of  these  wantons.  This  nation 
seemed  to  us  more  gross  and  ill  made  than 
the  others. 

On  the  24th  we  left  it  and  wished  their 

canoes  to  cross  a  large  river  that  ran  at  the 

foot  of  their  village,  but  they  advised  us 

to  ascend  the  river,  giving  us  to  understand 

293 


JOURNEYS   OF 

by  signs  that  we  would  infallibly  be  killed 
on  the  other  side  if  we  crossed  the  river. 
We  could  not  learn  whether  they  were 
beasts  or  men  that  we  had  to  fear.  They 
gave  us  a  periagua,  in  which  we  put  twenty 
men,  and  the  eight  others  took  the  horses 
by  land.  After  five  days'  sailing  and  march- 
ing we  saw  some  Indians  fishing,  and,  al- 
though there  were  only  seven  or  eight  af 
them,  instead  of  fleeing  they  ran  up  to  re- 
ceive us.  We  recognized  them  as  a  nation 
called  Alakea,  among  whom  we  had  passed 
the  first  time  we  were  in  the  nation  of  the 
Senis.  They  took  us  to  their  village,  where 
we  were  received  with  all  possible  affection. 
They  kept  us  among  them  six  days,  and 
then,  having  aided  us  to  cross  the  river  in 
little  boats  of  buffalo  skins  sewed  together, 
they  took  us  to  the  village  of  the  Akafquy 
[Palaquesson,  Palaquechaune],  who.  know- 
ing us  by  reputation,  were  glad  to  have  us 
pass  by  their  village.  At  this  place  we  saw 
about  sixty  hermaphrodites,  for  the  most  of 
them  go  entirely  naked  after  sunset.  We 
there  also  saw  them  make  cloth  with  buf- 
falo wool,  and  a  stuff  which  seemed  to  us 
the  richest  in  the  world,  so  singular  was  it, 
for  it  is  made  of  birds'  feathers  and  the  hair 
of  animals  of  every  color. 

On  the  27th  we  started  from  Akafquy  to 
294 


LA    SALLE 

go  to  the  Penoy,  where  we  arrived  on  the 
29th. 

On  the  30th  we  went  to  sleep  at  the  vil- 
lage of  Saffory  [Assonis?],  where  we  were 
received  with  the  same  friendship  as  in  the 
others.     We  remained  there  one  day,  and 
we  had  the  pleasure  of  seeing  an  alligator 
twelve    feet    long   captured.     The    Indians 
employed  a  hook  made  of  a  buffalo  bone 
tied  to  the  end  of  a  cord,  studded  with  small 
bones,  so  that  he  cannot  bite  through,  and 
they  use  no  bait  but  a  piece  of  meat  on  the 
hook.     The  Indians,  who  wished  to  amuse 
themselves  with  it,  put  out  its  eyes  and  led 
it  into  a  prairie,  after  tying  its  head  to  its 
tail  and  tying  it  around  the  body  with  three 
different  cords,  made  of  bark  of  trees,  and 
passed  around  in  slip-knots,  and  after  tor- 
menting it  in  various  ways   for   full    four 
hours  they  turned  it  belly  up  and  confined 
it  from  head  to  tail  by  eight  stakes,  planted 
so  that  the  animal  could  not  move  in  any 
direction.    In  this  condition  they  flayed  him, 
and  then  gave  him  liberty  to  run,  to  have 
the  pleasure  of  tormenting  him  more.   This 
sport   lasted   all   day,   and  ended   with   the 
death   of  this   frightful   beast,   which   they 
killed  and  gave  to  their  dogs.     We  saw 
many  skins   of  this  animal  thrown   about, 
which  made  us  infer  that  there  were  many 

295 


JOURNEYS   OF 

in  that  river.  We  crossed  it,  however,  by 
the  help  of  the  Indians,  who,  having  led  us 
to  the  river  bank  and  yelled  for  half  an 
hour  to  frighten  and  drive  off  these  animals, 
swam  over,  after  putting  us  in  a  canoe ;  our 
horses,  accustomed  to  follow  us  everywhere 
like  dogs,  also  swam  over. 

On  the  evening  of  the  ist  of  February 
we  reached  the  village  of  Tipoy,  where  the 
people,  otherwise  well  made,  have  the  top 
of  the  head  quite  flat,  caused  by  the  mothers 
putting  on  their  children's  heads  flat  pieces 
of  wood  lined  with  wool,  which  by  a  gentle 
pressure  give  them  this  shape. 

On  the  2d,  Candlemas  Day,  we  left  this 
village,  led  by  a  Tipoy  Indian,  and  on  the 
3d  we  reached  the  village  of  our  good 
friends,  the  Anamis,  who  had  hospitably  re- 
ceived us  on  our  previous  excursion.  We 
had  the  chagrin  to  find  their  village  half- 
burnt  down.  They  gave  us  to  understand 
by  signs  that  a  hostile  party  which  surprised 
them  had  spread  this  desolation,  and  that 
they  would  have  burnt  it  all  had  they  not 
alarmed  them  by  firing  on  them  with  two 
guns  and  some  ammunition  that  we  had  left 
them ;  that,  never  having  seen  or  heard  of 
such  arms,  the  fear  they  inspired  put  them 
to  flight. 

On  the  4th  we  set  out,  and  on  the  8th  we 
296 


LA    SALLE 

arrived  at  the  great  village  of  the  SenisJ 
This  is  a  nation  that  occupies  a  territory 
eighteen  leagues  long.  We  were  received 
at  the  entrance  of  the  village  and  conducted 
to  a  large  and  beautiful  cabin,  where  we 
were  at  first  entertained  with  a  right  curious 
symphony.  The  chiefs  supped  with  us,  and 
we  reposed  more  tranquilly  than  we  had 
anywhere  else. 

On  the  9th,  after  a  crowd  of  young  men 
had  danced  a  dance  of  joy  in  our  cabin,  we 
were  taken  to  that  of  the  prince,  for  whom 
they  have  all  possible  veneration,  submis- 
sion and  respect,  for  when  he  went  abroad 
he  was  borne  by  eight  men  on  a  platform,  all 
the  tribe  ranged  in  two  lines,  both  hands 
on  the  forehead,  uttering  a  cry  of  joy  or 
humility ;  if  he  went  on  foot,  very  clean 
mats  were  spread  wherever  he  was  to  pass. 

We  left  this  village  for  fear  that  our  sol- 
diers should  tamper  with  the  women  and 
went  to  encamp  about  two  leagues  off,  in- 
tending to  stay  to  rest  and  recruit.  The 
people  of  the  country  made  us  sufficiently 
exact  maps  of  the  neighboring  rivers  and 
nations.  They  told  us  that  they  knew  the 
Spaniards,  and  depicted  to  us  their  cloth- 
ing,  and   showed   us   candlesticks,   swords, 

['  The  party   did   not   arrive  among  the  Cenis 
until  after  La  Salle's  death.] 
297 


JOURNEYS   OF 

bucklers,  daggers  and  Spanish  papers.  We 
are  convinced  that  they  are  not  far  off,  the 
more  so  as  the  Senis  have  a  number  of  fine 
horses. 

Feb.  i6,  1687. — On  the  i6th  we  left  this 
great  village  for  the  smaller  one  of  the  same 
nation,  twenty  leagues  off.  Thirty  well- 
mounted  young  warriors  took  us  by  as  well- 
beaten  a  road  as  that  from  Paris  to  Orleans. 
At  intervals  we  came  to  little  forts  in  the 
most  exposed  positions  and  everywhere  a 
most  level  country,  extremely  well  adapted 
to  pasturage.* 

*  Cavelier's  narrative  ends  abruptly  at  this 
point,  a  few  days  before  his  brother's  death. 


298 


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